STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: While addressing the press conference, Balvinder Singh Vice President stated that as per media reports Govt of India is going to present J&K Reorganization (Amendment) Bill 2023 in the Lok Sabha to pave the way for reserving two assembly seats for Kashmiri Migrants’ and one for displaced person from Pakistan occupied Kashmir.
“This is a welcome step but it is surprising that minority community of Sikhs of J&K including those residing in Kashmir and in Jammu province are being met with grave injustice at the hands of the present regime,” Balvinder said in a press conference here on Wednesday.
Though equality and justice demands that two seats should have been kept for Sikhs also, one for Sikhs of valley and one for Jammu, which has equal population as that of population of Kashmiri Pandits and has suffered greater hardships in its survival since 1947 till date, he said.
DGPC Jammu impressed upon the Central Govt to do justice with 3.5 lakh Sikhs and 12 to 14 lakh POJK DPs not only in their interest but in the interest of nation in future even the Parliamentary panel on Home Affairs has also recommended 8 Assembly seats for POJK DPs in its report no. 183 dt. 22 Dec 2014.
While addressing the media, Surjit Singh Secretary stated that POJK DPs are the first saviours 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 by all the successive govts.
This is in fact step motherly treatment to a community which actually fights for nationalism and stands with country, he added.
Needless to mention that this community having population of 3.5 lakh can affect 10 assembly seats.
DGPC strongly demanded that the proposed bill be modified to grant at least two-2 assembly seats to Sikhs of Valley and Jammu province from migrant quota and also the share of Sikhs of Jammu from 8 seats kept reserved for PoJK DPs of 1947.
Other prominent personalities who were present in the press conference include DGPC Jammu president Ranjeet Singh Tohra, Surjit Singh Gen Secretary, Ranvir Singh Jt Secretary, Jagpal Singh Cashier, Harjit Singh and Gurmeet Singh members and Incharge Dharam Parchar Committee DGPC, Tejinder Singh, Avtar Singh member DGPC, Manjit Singh, Surinder Singh Wazir, T P Singh, Manmohan Singh, Jasbir Singh, Balwan Singh, Daryodan Singh, Onkar Singh, Rajinder Singh Sudan, Rajinder Singh Retd ZEO and Tejinder Singh Naib Sarpanch.