Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, July 25: The J&K Gujjars Bakerwal Coordination Committee has expressed its deep anguish and resentment on the Union Government for including a Bill for discussion in the commencing Monsoon-Session of Parliament for granting Scheduled Tribe status to the so called ” Pahari & other Communities”.
In a joint press conference held here today, members of Coordination Committee said that the Bill should be dropped and not to be considered for including Non-Tribal upper caste communities into Scheduled Tribe category. Since, these communities are not a single ethnic group, rather a group of different developed communities speaking a common dialect called Pahari language. Most of these so called Paharis are high caste people, businessmen, landlords, previous rulers of Peer Panchal Region.
“How they can be Scheduled Tribe?” Whereas, Gujjars & Bakerwal is a nomads ethnic group scattered in whole of J&K. Large chunk of their population is still homeless. They were declared as Scheduled Tribe in the year 1991 & recently one and half year back after abrogation of Article 370 Forest Rights Act & Political reservation was granted to the Schedule Tribe in the UT of J&K. They have not yet tasted the fruits of Forest Right Act, political reservation & by introducing this bill their ST status shall be diluted,” Anwar Choudhary, president of the JKGBCC said.
He said Gujjars & Bakerwal is a patriotic community and diluting their Scheduled Tribe Status shall be a great injustice to this innocent community.
Heads of number of of Reserved Category Joint Action Committee also participated in the conference and expressed their concern with regard to the inclusion of some other fake identities as Scheduled Caste in the UT of J&K and also shown their resentment that Mandal Commission report is yet to be implemented in the UT of J&K. The same is to be implemented as per the original recommendations of Mandal Commission.
Prominent among those present included Ashok Basotra, Parvez Ahmed, Akram Choudhary, Choudhary Aslam Khan, Mushtaq Choudhary, Hasham Ali, Abdul Hamid Choudhary, Shah Mohammad Chowdhary, Ali Hussain Hakla, Ch Bashir Ahmed Noon and others.
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