Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Aug 21: Former Deputy Chief Minister, Kavinder Gupta, during his interaction with a deputation of Civic Safai Karamchari Union, under its State president, Rinku Gill, said that a day has come when a large population of Balmiki Samaj got a big relief.
He said that 62 years is a long period and two generations of this Samaj have perished while struggling for grant of citizenship rights but the successive Government did not pay any heed.
Kavinder Gupta said that the abrogation of Article 370 will now clear decks for treating these people as State subjects and they too will lead dignified lives with their family members getting all the benefits enjoyed by other citizens.
Kavinder Gupta said that Article 370 harmed the State and its people for decades and its abrogation has brought smile on the faces and joy in the lives of the people, barring a few, who had been misleading the people of the State and running their big business houses while a common citizen was suffering para. “The BJP has all along struggled for grant of citizenship rights to Balmiki Samaj and finally very positive development has taken place,” Kavinder said and added that Safai Karmcharis of Balmiki Samaj were brought in J&K from Amritsar and Gurdaspur on the assurance of grant of PRC status by the then Government in 1957 but later nothing was done in this regard.
The State subjects were provided to a few families in 1957 only and thereafter no one was treated as J&K citizen. The young generation of this community is worst hit and now they too will be benefitted, Kavinder said.
The members of delegation included general secretary, Kulvinder, Razak, Bhatti, Vicky Lawrance, Halley Sohotra, Pooja, Balbir, Salim, Gulshan, Meenu, Polla.
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