Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, June 10: Chief patron of National Panthers Party, Prof Bhim Singh, in a rejoinder to Prime Minister, Narendra Modi has raised the issue of citizenship and rehabilitation of nearly 85,000 refugees who crossed over from Sialkote-Lahore sector to Jammu Pradesh in 1947 during partition of India.
They were legally and lawfully settled along the International Border by the State administration headed by Sheikh Mohd Abdullah. Each family, which migrated from the areas, now Pakistan, to Jammu Pradesh (India) was allotted small pieces of land/immoveable property by the orders by Sheikh Abdullah. These Pak refugees were provided weapons for protecting the borders for the reason that the rulers of Kashmir had very limited, 12000 soldiers only who were fighting the Pakistani raiders in the Valley.
The NPP supremo reminded the historians, politicians and the hostile leadership of Kashmir that those refugees from Pakistan were the only defenders of the citizens/state subjects of J&K along Jammu-Sialkote borders (Indo-Pak border).
He said the Constitution of J&K was promulgated in 1957 which itself expressly provides that all those who were settled lawfully 10 years before the promulgation of the J&K Constitution and were holding immoveable property shall be entitled to the certificate of Permanent Residents in the State. He called it most unfortunate that the Kashmiri leaders who preferred a separate constitution for the State as it is today, have not accepted the mandate of the constitution that all Pakistani refugees who were born after 1947 in J&K are Indian citizens/permanent residents of the State under the Law. 90% of the ‘so-called’ Pak citizens were born in J&K (India) who fulfilled all the conditions to be permanent residents of the State of J&K being born in the State while their parents were living as lawful citizens in J&K settled by a lawful Government headed by Sheikh Mohd Abdullah.
Prof Singh communicated to the Prime Minister that he should seek the legal opinion on the issue and direct his Government in J&K to settle these Pak refugees with comprehensive settlement according to the mandate of the Constitution of J&K, read with Constitution of India. These refugees born in J&K have acquired a status of a permanent resident of State and citizens of India.
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