Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, June 1: Setting the process into motion for addressing the issues of West Pakistan, Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK), 1965 and 1971 Chhamb and other refugees, the Government of India has asked its Intelligence agencies to conduct detailed survey of all the refugees including their numbers, families, localities inhabited by them and their demands for which they had been struggling for years together but never got any justice from the successive Governments except for the assurances.
The reports of survey of all refugees putting up in Jammu province came within days after the Government decided to study roadmap for return of Kashmiri Pandit migrants, prepared by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). Prime Minister Narendra Modi in twin rallies in Jammu on December 1, 2013 and Hiranagar on March 26, 2014 promised to address the issues of Kashmiri migrants as well as West Pakistan, PoK and all other refugees.
Official sources told the Excelsior that the Government of India has directed the Intelligence agencies to conduct a detailed survey on number of refugees living in Jammu region, who mostly comprised from West Pakistan, PoK apart from those who migrated from Chhamb and other areas in 1965 and 1971 wars with Pakistan. The West Pakistan refugees have been even denied citizenship rights in view of Article 370 and state subject laws in Jammu and Kashmir and can neither purchase land nor apply for Government jobs here.
Intelligence sources admitted that they had started a survey of all refugees putting up in Jammu region including their total numbers and families, the localities they were putting in and their major issues for which they were agitating for a long period. Except for preparing packages for the refugees, which too remained on papers, the successive Governments at the Centre and the State took no steps to address the issues pending for past 50 to 60 years now.
Sources said the new Government soon after taking over has started showing interest in Jammu and Kashmir, which remained their priority area even when the BJP was in the Opposition. The massive mandate which the BJP got in form of three Parliamentary seats out of six was one of the reasons, which has prompted the party Government to focus on the issues of migrants and refugees, who voted en block for the party hoping that the new Government would solve their problems once and for all.
Pointing out that the Government of India wanted to get a detailed report on status of refugees living in Jammu region and their problems before speaking to their representatives and addressing their issues, sources said the Government was determined to take steps to resolve their issues, which have been pending for past five to six decades, on humanitarian grounds.
Sources said while the issues of PoK, 1965 and 1971 refugees can be addressed with packages as majority of them were state subjects, the problem would crop up in finding a solution to about 1.5 lakh West Pakistan refugees as they have been denied even citizenship rights as they were not state subjects. While PoK refugees got state subjects as the Government treated PoK as part and parcel of Jammu and Kashmir, the West Pakistani refugees couldn’t purchase land or apply for State Government jobs. They can contest and vote for Parliament elections but can’t even vote for the Assembly elections.
A team of three Interlocutors appointed by the MHA for Jammu and Kashmir after 2010 unrest in the Kashmir Valley, which comprised Dileep Padgaonkar, Prof Radha Kumar and MM Ansari had recommended citizenship rights for West Pakistan refugees but the report never saw light of the day despite the fact that it was submitted in 2011.
Sources said after getting detailed report from the Intelligence agencies about the refugees, the Government of India was likely to work out the solution to them.
The Government of India had already asked the MHA to prepare a detailed roadmap for the return and rehabilitation of Kashmiri Pandit migrants. The MHA was likely to give its presentation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Rajnath Singh shortly.
Sources didn’t rule out the possibility of the Government of India coming out with major announcements on Kashmiri migrants and other refugees within the next few months after holding discussions with all stakeholders.
Article 6 of Jammu and Kashmir Constitution provided citizenship rights only to those who were either State subjects or having lawfully acquired immovable property in the State prior to 1954. The refugees, who came from West Pakistan didn’t fall within this category. Hence, they are not considered as permanent residents of Jammu and Kashmir.
“Consequently, they neither can own property nor can get Government jobs or get any other benefits that accrue to the citizens of the State. There are over 1.5 lakh west Pakistan refugees living in border districts of Jammu, Samba and Kathua district for past 65 years in squalid camps, and have been denied citizenship rights, right to vote in Assembly elections, right to professional education, right to employment etc. Though they are lawfully citizens of India, they are still considered as ‘non-state subjects’ in J&K. All these problems were the result of Article 370 of Indian constitution,’’ sources said.
There are about 1.2 million refugees from PoK, who were subjected to genocide by the tribes backed by Pakistan during Oct-Nov of 1947. These raids destroyed not only the life and property of lakhs of people but also the very fabric of human society and relationships.
“These refugees belonged to Mirpur, Poonch and Muzaffarabad areas. The estimated population of these refugees presently settled in Jammu province is about 10 lakh,’’ sources said.
While those who migrated from the then West Pakistan were given ‘refugee’ status and settled by the Indian government elsewhere in the country, those who migrated from PoK (mainly from Muzafarabad and Mirpur areas) are yet to be settled and live even today without ‘refugee’ status. The Government’s position has been that, since they have migrated from PoK, which is legally a part of India, they are technically not qualified to be categorized under the ‘refugee’ bracket. Hence, they cannot claim the benefits of refugees.
The plight of Chhamb refugees and other displaced persons during wars with Pakistan in 1965 and 1971 is largely self-inflicted. Nearly 5000 families were displaced in 1971 from Chhamb under Simla Agreement as under this agreement most of the area of Chhamb was given to Pakistan. Along with them a large number of people have migrated from villages on the border and Line of Control during wars in 1965 and 1971.
Many of them were advised to vacate their lands by the army to enable it to lay mines on the border. According to a statement of the Divisional Commissioner, Jammu, their number totaled 1.5 lakh. Even if they go back, they cannot enter mined areas and an area of 16,000 acres of land occupied by the Army.
As such there are about 2.5 lakh refugees from Chhamb region itself. Most of these refugees were farmers. They were settled along the border line from Akhnoor to Kathua district. They were not provided full quota of land as per the prescribed scale of the State Revenue Authority to the land that they had left behind in Chhamb. The monetary compensations paid to them were meager and not sufficient to build up shelter for their residence and make these people to earn both ends meal for their families.
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