Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, June 1: Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party (JKAP) senior leader, Ghulam Hassan Mir today expressed serious concern over growing gulf between people and the Government in Kashmir province mainly caused due to unnecessary delay in shifting of `Darbar’ from Jammu to Srinagar.
In a statement issued here, Mir said while the temporary deferment of the scheduled annual shifting of seat of power from Jammu to Srinagar is understandable because of the COVID crisis, but delaying it further shall mean depriving people of Kashmir of their right to effective governance.
“The lockdown across the country has been eased out and attendance in Government offices has significantly increased. Now, almost all the State Governments are responding to the needs and developmental aspirations of the people very well. Amid this situation, it is beyond any justifiable reason that the Lieutenant Governor has not shifted his office to Rajbhawan Srinagar and similarly the Government’s administrative offices have not moved to the summer capital as was scheduled to be in the first week of May,” Mir remarked.
He said the uncalled-for delay in `Darbar’ move to Srinagar has not only incremented the psychological gap between the people of two regions but has also added to the woes of people of Kashmir who feel deserted by the present dispensation.
“The day-to-day sufferings of people have been incremented by the prevailing COVID pandemic which otherwise needed to be catered by a fully functional Government which is unfortunately, missing in Kashmir province,” he said.
Mir said the practice of moving the seat of governance including civil secretariat between Srinagar-Jammu and vice versa involves emotional and political sensitivities in Jammu and Kashmir. “The practice of shifting Government offices between these two Capitals encompasses political empowerment of people. So it will be gross injustice with the people of both regions if this exercise is seen through the prism of financial implications only,” he added.
The JKAP leader questioned the motive behind lack of interest shown by the senior Government officers to shift their offices to Srinagar and said it is also reality that “we have to live with it now’.
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