Guru Resolution: Cong still indecisive

SYED ALI SAFVI

SRINAGAR, Sep 21: Amid speculations that Congress may abstain from voting, the much awaited Congress legislature party meeting, which was held here this evening, primarily to discuss the party’s stand vis-à-vis the resolution seeking clemency to parliament attack convict, Afzal Guru, ended without discussion.

According to the party insiders, the meeting, which lasted 15 minutes, decided to again meet on September 27 to discuss the crucial issue.They said that J&K Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) president, Prof Saif-ud-Din Soz, told the party legislators to wait till September 27.

“Let’s wait for the party high command’s directives in this regard,” Soz said. “We will meet again on September 27 to clarify our stand.”

The resolution is scheduled to come up for voting in the State Legislative Assembly on September 28.

Pertinently, the meeting was attended by JKDPN president, Ghulam Hassan Mir, and JKPDF chief, Hakim Mohammad Yasin. Both the leaders were invited to the meeting by the JKPCC chief.

However, Congress Legislature Party leader, Chowdhary Mohammad Aslam, Deputy Chairman State Legislative Council, Arvinder Singh Micky, were conspicuous by their absence.

Other Congress legislators who preferred to stay away from the meeting included minister of state for higher education, Manohar Lal Sharma, Viqar Rasool, Naresh Gupta, Subhash Gupta, Haji Ali Mohammad Bhat, and Ashok Kumar.

Pertinently, independent MLA from Langate, Eng. Abdul Rasheed, has submitted a resolution to the Speaker of the state Assembly seeking clemency for the December 2001 Parliament attack convict, Afzal Guru, who has been sentenced to death by Supreme Court of India.

After the mercy petition filed by Afzal’s wife to President was rejected, political parties in Kashmir are afraid that the decision could stir more than a hornet’s nest in the strife torn valley.

The state’s principal opposition party, PDP, has extended its outright support to the Guru resolution, while Jammu based parties BJP and Panthers Party have announced to oppose the resolution “tooth and nail”.

Ruling coalition partners - National Conference (NC) and Congress – are yet to make up their mind.

While speculations are rife that Congress may abstain from voting to avoid angering their vote bank in Jammu and Kashmir, NC is reportedly in a state of dilemma to make its choice.

Meanwhile, according to reliable sources, JKPDF president, Hakim Mohammad Yasin, may vote in favour of the resolution.

In demilitarization din, CRPF eyes 500 kanals of land in Budgam

SYED ALI SAFVI

BUDGAM, Sep 19: In a move that has a potential of angering public and triggering yet another spell of unrest in strife-torn valley of Kashmir, paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) is planning to acquire around 500 kanals of land in central Kashmir’s Budgam district.

According to reliable sources, the CRPF wants the land for establishing a training centre and living quarters. The land is a kilometer and half away from the district headquarters.

The move has created panic among residents who are worried about their safety.

“We don’t want to live under constant fear,” said the residents.

Mainstream political leaders and separatists are aghast at the move.

Former minister and MLA Khan Sahib, Hakim Mohammad Yaseen has termed the move as “unfortunate”.

“I don’t understand why they chose only Budgam for this purpose. Humhama, Sheikhpora, ShariefAbad, Damodar Karewa are already under their occupation,” he said.

He said on one hand there are talks about demilitarization and on the other hand more and more land is being acquired by the forces in the valley.

The sources said that the land owners, mostly property dealers who are not the residents of the area, are willing to give land to CRPF while the residents are against any such move.

Pertinently, according to official statistics, 128257 kanals of land have been occupied by security forces in the Kashmir valley. Incidentally, Budgam district tops the list with 55468 kanals of land under security force occupation. Damodar Karewah, occupied the security forces, has around 500 acres of land that belongs to farmers of Budgam district. However, for the last three decades, the farmers have been fighting a legal battle to get their land back or an "adequate compensation".

Moreover, the landowners of Damodhar Karewah, Wathoora and Kralpora villages, had filed a contempt petition in the State High Court wherein they submitted that security forces had "violated and dishonoured" High Court and Supreme Court orders, by "failing to either acquire and pay compensation or vacate around 4000 acres of land in its occupations since 1952 at Old Airport by March 31, 2010".

Minister for Revenue, Raman Bhalla, had on September 2, 2011 directed officials of district administration Budgam to conduct a fresh survey of land under acquisition of security forces in many areas of the district. The survey, he said, would be carried out jointly by a team of Defense, Revenue, ATS and other concerned departments "to avoid any confusion".

Interestingly, Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) had on August 10, 2011 alleged that 200 acre land near Indian Air Force station in Budgam district has been grabbed by private parties in connivance with government officials. The BJP had demande a probe by CAG and Ministry of Defence into the matter.

According to established norms, the army camp should be away from civil population, and it should not be constructed on agriculture land or in orchards.

However, in case of Budgam the identified land is very adjacent to civilian population and is an orchard land.

Talking to Kashmir Times, MLA Budgam, Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi, said that the people are divided over the issue.

“Some are in favour and some are against it. I will go by the will of the people,” he said.

Pertinently, district administration is supposed to get NOC (No Objection Certificate) from the concerned MLA before giving land to the men in uniform.

“If the said land is given to the forces, it will open a Pandora’s box,” Yaseen said.

When contacted, IG CRPF Operations, Dr BN Ramesh, said that they were looking for land in Kashmir.

“CRPF has 17 battalions. We need to develop a permanent battalion sites and for that we need around 200 acres of land,” he told Kashmir Times.

When contacted, District Development Commissioner (DDC) Budgam, Mohammad Rafi, said that there are certain guidelines that need to be followed in such cases.

"We need to give some priority in finding appropriate land for security forces who are on internal security. It's not like they asking and we refusing. But there are certain parameters that need to be fulfilled," Rafi said. "First, we have to see that the move is not affecting the agriculture land. The Land Revenue Act prohibits conversion of agriculture land for non-agriculture purposes. Second, it should not result in creating unemployment unless it offers an alternative employment package. Third, in such cases, we have to obtain a NOC from local MLA."

Rafi also said that there was a difference of opinion among the people regarding transfer of land.

"Land owners, most of them absentee land owners, are willing to give their land to security forces, but the residents are objecting it," he said. "Amid stiff opposition, we may not be able to do it."

Significantly, according to government statistics, 55468 kanals of land have been occupied by security agencies in Budgam district, 51992 kanals of land in North Kashmir, while in south Kashmir, security agencies have occupied 20797 kanals of land.

The DDC said that his office has not yet issued legal notification, but the CRPF has been asked to look for an alternative location, which is away from the civil population.

"We are looking for a suitable location for them," he said.

7 Yrs On, New Bus Stand Budgam Yet To Be Made Operational

Commuters Suffer; Shopkeepers Threaten Suicide; Administration Sleeps

SYED ALI SAFVI

BUDGAM, Sep 16: In a case of share negligence and apathy, the state government, even after seven years, has failed to shift Budgam Bus stand to its new location, much to the dismay of commuters, and shopkeepers, who have threatened to commit suicide in the wake of callous attitude of the state government and Budgam district administration.

The state government had acquired 41 kanals of land near Naraspora, one and a half kilometer from Budgam district headquarters, for establishing bus stand. The site was strategically located and ideally suited for the bus stand. The government spent crores of rupees in developing the site and compensating the land owners. However, the money seems to have just been thrown down the drain as the district administration has failed to make the new Bus stand operation even after seven years, for reasons best known to the authorities.

District Development Commissioner (DDC) Budgam, Mohammad Rafi, who also happens to be chairman of Regional Transport Authority Budgam, had at a meeting, held on July 6, 2009 asserted that the new Bus Stand would be made functional “soon”.

Assistant Regional Transport officer Budgam had issued a letter No 458-62/ARTO Budgam/ 2011, dated 23.05.2011 directing all transport association owners to ply their vehicles from the new Bus Stand Budgam from May 9, 2011.

Worried over unnecessary delay, the DDC, on record, had brought to the notice of general public and all the transporters that the new Bus Stamd would be made operational from May 12, 2011. However, four months on, the Bus Stand is yet to be made functional.

Chaos: Old Bus Stand

Executive Officer Municipal Committee Budgam vide letter No 09/280-81, dated 02-09-2009 had informed DDC that necessary instructions should be issued to concerned agencies for making new Bus Stand functional.

“Office of the Executive Officer Municipal Committee Budgam has already discussed the said issue with your office vide letter No MC/Bud/07/405, dated 07-03-2007 and suggested for making the Bus Adda functional,” the letter read.

Members of Shopkeepers and Owners Association, New Bus Stand Budgam (SOA) alleged that when they approached to DDC budgam they were told that the Bus Stand would not be made operational “because of some political pressure”.

“We borrowed huge amount of money from banks and other financial institutions to acquire tenancy rights of the shops, but since the Bus Stand has not been made operational our shops are closed down and the burden of loan is increasing day by day,” the shopkeepers, who have acquired shops at the new Bus Stand said. “We have been pushed to wall. We have reached to a stage where there is no option except committing suicide.”

They said that their repeated pleas have only fallen on deaf ears.

The members of SOA had filed an RTI with DDC Budgam, seeking information about the action taken by his office regarding shifting of Bus Stand.

Interestingly, the office of DDC Budgam directed the applicants to Executive Officer, Municipal Committee, Budgam, stating that “this office is neither the appellant authority nor PIO for the concerned matter”. (DCBI/RTI/11/166-68, dated 13.08.2011)

DESERTED: New Bus Stand.

The shopkeepers also shot a legal notice to DDC Budgam on August 27, 2011 urging him to make the new Bus Stand operational “to the satisfaction of your promises within 15 days”.

“Almost three weeks have passed, but we have not received any reply from the office of DDC Budgam,” the shopkeepers association said.

Pertinently, the SOA had, on October 6, 2009 had made a representation to Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah, seeking his intervention into the matter.

Additional Secretary to CM’s Private Secretariat had directed DDC Budgam to “examine the grievances for its redressal”.

The DDC Budgam had on November 16, 2009 asked Executive Officer Municipal Committee Budgam for report.

When contacted, DDC Budgam told Kashmir Times that there is a certain disagreement between sections of the society vis-à-vis shifting of the Bus Stand.

“It generally happens. If you have an established market somewhere and you want to shift a bus stand, there will be disagreement. This has happened in Ganderbal, Kangan or in the case of even Lal Chowk. So the kind of hindrance we are facing is not unusual. May be the divide here (in Budgam) is deeper, but we should be able to sort it out over a period of time. It’s not that we can not enforce our writ, but the fact of the matter is that we want to solve it amicably where people go with us and we could make them understand that this is not for the benefit of the government, but for the benefit of the people, commuters, passenger traffic and shopkeepers,” he said.

He said that it was unfortunate that Budgam town has not developed over the last three decades.

“It’s as bad or as good a headquarter as it was in 1979 when it was established,” he said.

Asked about the delay in making the Bus Stand operational, the DDC said, “Some people with vested interests were creating hindrance. Most of them are shopkeepers at old Bus Stand. They have basically livelihood concerns. They can not be dismissed of hand. We are trying to address the concerns of both sides,” he said. “A balanced act is required where the old Bus Stand does not get suddenly deserted. Some amount of activity is retained there to the extend that it does not cause hindrance to the commuting public.”