RAJ DALUJA
Call it duplicity or a well thought over strategy, the so-called mainstream politicians have hugely contributed towards shift-over of Kashmir from Reshiwaar (the land of saints and seers) to radicalised Valley, which has now virtually become out-of-bounds for non-Muslims.
Hypocrites, as they are, the Kashmir-centric mainstream politicians and separatists keep crying from roof-tops that the State of Jammu and Kashmir has been and shall remain a single entity but practically they have never owned Jammu as an equal region. Except for exploitation and subjugation, the Duggarland has no meaning for them. Had it not been so, the motivated 2008 agitation over Amarnath land row had no justification. The Valley’s ruling class has no issues over use of more than a lakh Kanal of forest land on Trikuta Hills for creating permanent facilities and facilitating pilgrimage to the Holy Cave Shrine of Mata Vaishno Devi but they make a common cause when it comes to creating temporary facilities for Amarnathji Yatris on Kashmir Himalayas. For them, over ten million pilgrims, thronging 24X 7 365 days, pose no environmental threat to the Jammu region or in the peripheries of Trikuta Hills but just three to four lakh Yatris coming to the Valley during 45 to 60 days yatra create havoc with Kashmir ecology. On the issue of Amarnath Yatra, the PDP could withdraw support to the Congress in 2008 and National Conference Member Parliament of that time had cheeks to declare in the Lok Sabha that “Ek Inch Zameen Bhi Nahi Denge Amarnathji Shrine Board Ko” but on settlement of Rohingyas and Bangladeshis in Jammu they will not speak a word.
The votaries of Jammu and Kashmir as a single entity have no objection to Sainik Colony in Jammu but they cannot tolerate a Sainik Colony in Srinagar, notwithstanding the fact that it would have been rehabilitated by State-Subject Kashmiri Muslim ex-servicemen. West Pakistan Refugees are red rag for them but Tibetan Muslims settled around Hari Parbhat Srinagar cause no irritation, either to mainstreamists or separatists.
Kashmir’s ruling class has not only maintained its hegemony over the Jammu and the Ladakh regions but they have all along been selective in their decisions. In his second tenure as Chief Minister, Dr Farooq Abdullah came up with innovative idea of having MLAs colony in Roop Nagar, Jammu but during all this tenures as chief political executive of the State, he never thought about having a similar colony for lawmakers in Srinagar. Such a colony in Srinagar would have, in fact, been a right move towards strengthening integration of the regions, especially after the hounding out of minuscule minority from the Valley at gun-point by Pakistani blood-hounds with the tacit support of so-called secularists.
The MLAs colony in Roop Nagar, Jammu had been strongly resented to by the peoples’ Governor Jagmohan during his turbulent brief stint in early nineties. He terminated the allotments (which were later restored due to judicial intervention) not because of the colony coming up in Jammu but for the “corrupt practices” adopted. In his book ‘My Frozen Turbulence in Kashmir”, Jagmohan writes, “I am dismayed to see this case (Allotment of seventy-lour (74) plots to ministers and MLAs/MLCs in Roop Nagar Housing Colony). It shows how self-serving certain sections of the power structure have become. Almost all the MLAs/MLCs, including the ministers, have decided to give unto themselves a plot each. And that too in a manner which shows no respect for fundamental principles of public administration and justice.
The plots were meant for auction. By one stroke, they were taken out of auction by the ministers for allotting these plots to themselves as well as to those (MLAs/MLCs) whose duty was to act as a watch dog of the public interest. There is no resolution of the Jammu Development Authority, changing its decision to auction the plots in question. The statutory provisions of Jammu and Kashmir Development Act have been flouted. I understand that the ‘agreements’ have also been executed with a speed wholly alien to the erstwhile regime. During the last week, 1 have come across a number of cases in which salaries have not been paid to the employees for the last 10 months. The cases of Sopore College and Sopore School are relevant in this regard. Likewise, the employees of the Notified Area Committees have not been paid. Only yesterday I had met a widow whose husband was killed in terrorist violence in December. She is still knocking the door from one office to another without getting even an iota of relief. In this case, however, decision was taken with unprecedented speed, allotment orders obtained and agreements executed after securing concessional method of payment of money.
After considering all aspects of the case, including the mala fide nature of the transaction, I have come to the conclusion that it would be in the public interest to rescind the order which in any case was ab initio void. 1, therefore, order that allotments should be cancelled and all concerned informed individually and amounts collected refunded”.
The element of corruption apart; what was the motivation for the Kashmir- centric rulers to have a colony in Jammu and not in Srinagar? The issue about MLAs colonies at Jammu (one more) and Srinagar was raised again by the lawmakers last year. In its June session of the State Legislature, the Finance Minister had told in a written reply that the demand of allotting housing plots to MLAs/ MLCs in Srinagar and Jammu will be considered. Nothing has, however, been heard since then. One only fears that the colony at Srinagar is not bone of contention because the Valley may not be receptive to the influx of Jammu based legislators, settling in ‘sacrosanct’ Kashmir-like KP Colony and Sainik Colony.
