Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Sept 19: A delegation of All India Jat Mahasabha (AIJMS) led by its president Choudhary Manmohan Singh today met Chief Secretary (CS) Arun Kumar Mehta and sought ownership rights for the land chunks allotted to displaced Jat families during Indo-Pak wars of 1965 and 1971.
The delegation submitted a memorandum to the Chief Secretary highlighting the issues and demands of over 5 lakh Jat community members living in J&K. The main demand raised by the AIJMS in the memorandum include ownership rights to the families who were allotted land at various places by the then State Government post their displacement from their original homes during the Indo- Pak wars of 1965 and 1971.
Choudhary Manmohan said, “The Jats have no other resources, income or job except surviving on very meager land they were allotted and being possessed by them since years. Some of the Jat families’ land chunks are coming under Government approved and financed NHs, circular arterial roads, border development roads, etc but due to lack of ownership rights, the affected families have not been able to get entitled compensation.”
Giving instances of such injustice, he cited the cases of NH passing through village Supwal, concrete bund under-construction by the BSF in the area from village Kangwala in Samba district going across village Sai Kalan in RS Pura area and beyond, where Jat families have been denied compensation just because of lack of the aforesaid rights.
The Jat leader also apprised the CS that a survey was conducted by the NHAI authorities from Lakhanpur to Jammu in 2008 to acquire the land along the NH and now 14 years, the NHAI has desired to acquire the same land by paying the compensation as per 2008 rates, which is not acceptable to Jat community.
After listening to the plight of AIJMS delegation, the Chief Secretary assured to place the matter before the higher authorities for an early and favourable resolution.
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