Excelsior Correspondent
SAMBA, Aug 30: Accusing the National Conference (NC) of illegally settling the Gujjar bastis during its regime on State and forest land in Samba district, vice president District Congress Committee (DCC) Samba, Babal Gupta today said that these Gujjar families came from Bhadarwah, Doda Kishtwar, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh and were settled at Rakh Barotian on forest land by the administration in connivance with then MLA.
Gupta, while addressing a press conference at Vijaypur today said that 36 Gujjar families from the Indo-Pak border took shelter in the area during Kargil war and later their number increased by and by.
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He said as the area has been selected for construction of AIIMS and the Central Government has released the funds for the same also but the Gujjar families don’t allow the demarcation of land demanding compensation to them though they have illegally occupied the forest land in the area.
Gupta further accused the Kashmiri leaders of not taking the action against the Gujjars as they are not interested in the establishment of AIIMS in Jammu. He said it has been learnt that the Government has also prepared compensation for the Gujjar families but some vested interests and leaders of NC are provoking them not to vacate the land.
Moreover, NC leaders are trying to make the voter lists and ration cards of these Gujjar families who are not State Subjects as they are the residents of Punjab and HP.
He said it is the cause of concern that about two years have elapsed since the AIIMS was sanctioned for Jammu and the funds have also been released but the Gujjar families have not been evacuated till date.
He alleged that some vested interests also wanted to shift the AIIMS from the proposed site of Rakh Barotian which will be strongly resisted.
Others present in the press conference included Shiv Kumar Sharma, Makhan Lal Gupta, Raj Kumar Bhagat and Rama Nand Sharma.
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