Jammu: Kashmiri Pandits protest; seek rehabilitation policy, fresh job package

Displaced Kashmiri Pandits on Saturday staged a protest demonstration in Jammu, demanding the formulation and implementation of a comprehensive rehabilitation policy for the community in Kashmir Valley and the announcement of a fresh employment package for 15,000 educated displaced youth under the prime ministers special package.

Displaced Kashmiri Pandits on Saturday staged a protest demonstration in Jammu, demanding the formulation and implementation of a comprehensive rehabilitation policy for the community in Kashmir Valley and the announcement of a fresh employment package for 15,000 educated displaced youth under the prime minister's special package. Carrying placards and raising slogans in support of their demands, including return and rehabilitation, employment opportunities and proper political representation, the protesters assembled outside the Press Club here under the banner of Youth All India Kashmiri Samaj (YAIKS). The protest was led by YAIKS president R K Bhat, who said the community had once again taken to the streets to press for its long-pending demands. Bhat appealed to the Narendra Modi-led government to facilitate the return of Kashmiri Pandits to their ''motherland'' after nearly 37 years of displacement. ''We believe Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision must ensure justice and rightful rehabilitation for Kashmiri Pandits. We appeal to the prime minister to formulate a comprehensive return and rehabilitation package in the Valley for the entire community,'' he told reporters here. He said the community had faith in the prime minister, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and the Union Territory administration. ''The Kashmiri Pandit community has hit the streets from today. This is the same organisation that, in 2010, motivated Kashmiri Pandit youth to return to the Kashmir Valley. Even today, that movement continues in another form,'' Bhat said. He urged the government to place a concrete rehabilitation proposal before the community, saying it should include employment opportunities for youth, provisions for overage aspirants and relief holders, besides restoration of rights and livelihoods lost during displacement. Calling for a dignified and collective return of displaced families, he said strong resolutions should be passed reflecting the intention to rehabilitate Kashmiri Pandits in the Valley. Bhat said around 15,000 Kashmiri Pandit youth were ready to return to the Valley if proper compensation, infrastructure and employment support were ensured. He also demanded the implementation of court rulings delivered in favour of displaced Pandits in different cases and sought employment for affected families willing to return. ''This peaceful protest is meant to convey our concerns. In the coming days, it can become a major movement, though it will remain peaceful. Every displaced person must be rehabilitated in Kashmir,'' he said. Referring to the prime minister's employment package, Bhat said only around 6,000 Kashmiri Pandits had so far been rehabilitated in the Valley and questioned the government over the future of the remaining displaced population. ''If the government can provide jobs to five or six thousand people, why can't it discuss the complete rehabilitation of Kashmiri Pandits?'' he asked. The organisation also thanked the Centre and the Delimitation Commission for reserving two assembly seats for displaced Kashmiris and advocated a mechanism for conducting elections for these seats under government supervision to ensure democratic representation within the community. He also appreciated the Centre's decision to provide representation to Kashmiri Pandits in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly through nominated members, but demanded the creation of a proper mechanism to ensure effective implementation of such measures. Bhat criticised the government over NFSA and said the displaced community considered itself a single entity and opposed any attempt to create separate classifications among Kashmiri Pandits. ''We are a displaced community, though the government termed us migrants. Until Kashmiri Pandits return to their homeland with dignity, no one has the right to redefine our status,'' he said. In a memorandum, the YAIKS urged the Government of India to comprehensively review and redesign the prime minister's return, relief and rehabilitation package for Kashmiri Pandits. The organisation demanded 15,000 additional government jobs under the prime minister's package for unemployed, displaced youth, including Left-Over Candidates (LOC), and sought compensation for overaged youth and displaced traders for decades-long loss of livelihood. The YAIKS also demanded enhancement of relief assistance for relief holders from the existing Rs 108 per day per person to Rs 500 per day, stating that the current amount was inadequate to meet present-day survival needs. Among other demands, the organisation called for the constitution of an Apex Committee for Kashmiri Pandits under the chairmanship of the Union Home Minister to deliberate on a comprehensive return and rehabilitation policy, besides seeking a parliamentary or assembly resolution on the issue. The group also advocated community-level internal elections under government supervision to prevent manipulation by vested interests.