Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Dec 2: MJR-47 has demanded at least 10 Assembly seats reserved for the Displaced Persons (DPs) from Pak occupied Jammu and Kashmir during 1947.
In a press statement the organisation said the Govt of India is convening a Parliamentary Session from Dec 4, 2023 for clearance of pendency and other important Parliamentary business. The bill for constitution of Assembly for JKUT including proposing two Assembly seats for Kashmiri Migrants and one seat for DP’s from PoJK of 1947 & 1965-’71 by nomination is also pending and is expected to be taken up during the ensuing session.
The PoJK DPs are the first saviors of J&K state , fought the Pak Army/ Tribal raiders to defend the State and faced genocide sacrificing more than 40,000 lives , dislocation, struggle, misery etc. for more than seven decades are being ignored. In 1947 before the Indian Army landed in Srinagar raiders had killed more than 4000 DPs in the valley only apart from those killed in PoJK.
These DPs are highly grateful to the Government for watching their interest. The bill must be presented keeping into consideration the big chunk of around 16 lakh populace of PoJK DPs. As such the seats for DPs should be enhanced justifiably in proportion to the population displaced from PoJK and now living in India. Non-consideration of such seats will be against the sprit of Representation of People Act and national interest.
The PoJK DPs with a population of around 16 lakhs (65% Hindus and 35% Sikhs) are living in Jammu province mostly on the IB and LoC all along Indo -PAK border from Poonch to Kathua districts and in other States. These DPs have been struggling to get justice and to get permanent relief and rehabilitation since last seventy five years.
Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs gave its recommendations in 2014 making clear recommendation to give 8-eight Assembly seats to these DPs . It is unjust to compare the DPs family count of 1947 with present family count of Kashmiri migrants. The migrants get their families registered updated in view of laid down provision of registration and they are being paid monthly cash doles. Whereas, no registration of DPs families has ever been updated since last 70 years.
The number of family units of DPs of 1947 being in the 3rd and 4th generation, has grown 12-15 times and the number of DPs families units today is around 4,50,000 – 5,00,000. The Govt is not granting representation on the basis of present population of to DPs. The KPs have been allowed 2-Assembly seats only on the analogy of dislocation though their constituency segments are very much in India, as such not giving 10-12 seats to PoJK DPs will only go against justice and the spirit of constitution.
Follow our WhatsApp channel