The
real import of 'Naya Kashmir'
The
National Conference
rode to the crest of power in the wake of the
accession of the State of Jammu and Kashmir to
India with its "Naya Kashmir Manifesto".
On paper, it looked as a secular, progressive and
democratic model hoping to shape the future of the
State by providing a political and economic agenda
for the amelioration of the lot of the common man.
But in practice, it aimed at reorganisation of the
State into a political system which had a
favourable bias for the Muslim majority.
By
the introduction of land reforms in the State, the
Hindus were hit severely as it deprived them even
of their small holdings. They were forced to seek
migration to towns and outside the State to earn a
living. Many enactments were passed in succession
in the year 1964 like Abolition of Jagirdari Act,
Distressed Debtors Relief Act and, in 1976, the
Agrarian Reforms Act. These Acts were all
contrived to the detriment of the Hindu community
and as a prelude to its destruction. Under the
garb of communal amity, equality and the provision
of opportunities for the suppressed and the
down-trodden, the Government in utter disregard to
the principle of universal right to equality of
opportunity and protection against discrimination
on the basis of religion, promoted the cause of
the Muslim majority of the State.
The
rules for recruitment to State Government Services
were changed from time to time to suit the Muslim
majority, as also the rules for admission into
educational institutions for professional and
higher education. As a result the Hindus in the
Valley faced discrimination in admission to
schools, professional institutions and
universities, in government jobs, placements,
transfers and promotions and discrimination in the
distribution of loans and subsidies for setting up
private enterprises.
While
in the rest of India there were safeguards for the
protection of minority rights, in Kashmir it was
the other way round. The majority rights were
safeguarded, promoted and glorified with total
disregard for the legitimate rights of the
minority which faced a perpetual squeeze at all
levels, on all fronts: constitutional, judicial,
bureaucratic, administrative and social. As a
result, the lands and estates of the minority
Hindus were forfeited, temple properties anexed
and the community members eased out of important
positions and portfolios through a perfectly
orchestrated plan, thus, excluding the community
from the administrative apparatus of the State.
The
voice of the minority community got drowned in the
cacophony of Islamic revivalism and fundamentalism
as it lost even its feeble representation when the
only constituency of Habbakadal, which had a Hindu
majority, was redefined to the total disadvantage
of the Hindus, rendering them ineffective even
from electing their representative to the State
Legislature. Most of the community members had to
resort to the only method of appeal left to them
for the redressal of their grievances; that was to
knock at the doors of Justice as is evident from
the innumerable individual and collective
writ-petitions of the community admitted in the
law courts against the administration, bureaucracy
and other institutions of the State.
Unfortunately, they faced disappointment a number
of times from the State Judiciary as a result of
which the Hindus had to move the Supreme Court of
India for justice. One case might make the point
viz. Triloki Nath Tiku & others vs. the State
where the Supreme Court of India gave a verdict in
favour of promotion of hundreds of Hindu school
teachers who had been superseded by the State
government in gross violation of their rights. The
orders of the highest court of the land were
flouted repeatedly by the State administration.
Most of the appellants after spending time, money
and resources, were not properly rehabilitated.
There are thousands of similar cases on record.
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