Excelsior Correspondent
-Excelsior/Amin War
SRINAGAR, Sept 1: The non-migrant Pandits today took to streets and staged a protest in favour of their demands which include rehabilitation.
Under the banner of Hindu Welfare Society Kashmir (HWSK), the agitating Pandits assembled at Press Enclave here in Lal Chowk area and staged anti-Government protest. The protesters had taken out the march from their head office in Bar Bar Shah locality here.
The protesters raised slogans against the State and Central Governments for “ignoring their plight” despite repeated assurances. They were holding a banner and placards.
The spokesman of HWSK Chunni Lal said that from last so many years they are staging protests but all the regimes have ignored them. He said: “We migrated from our villages to city and other towns unlike majority of Hindus who preferred to move to Jammu and other parts of the country. We are living a miserable life because we don’t have our own houses and we live in rented accommodations.”
Chunni Lal appealed Government to provide residential quarters to 51 internally displaced Pandit families. “They have completed all the formalities and the files are biting dust in Government offices. But, we don’t understand why are we being ignored,” he said.
The Pandit protesters further demanded the minority status, employment package, legislation of shrine bill. “The condition of valley temples is miserable. The trusts which are responsible for their maintenance are not doing enough. So we want that the shrine bill should be passed and the custody of temples should be given local Pandits,” the protesters added.
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