Jammu: Jammu Development Authority (JDA) today demolished dozens of shops belonging to Kashmiri Pandits at Muthi Camp in Jammu allegedly without any prior notice.
The ill-fated shopkeepers cried foul stating that they were given no advance notice and the move was sudden. “They came with bulldozers early in the morning and demolished our shops. We have been running these shops for 32 years. I was young then. I have to marry off my daughters,” said a Kashmiri Pandit Shopkeeper, whose shop was demolished.
Another KP whose shop was demolished said that LG Manoj Sinha and Chief Minister talks of rehabilitation of KPs, but today “we saw their rehabilitation in the form of demolition of our shops.”
“Is this your rehabilitation, Is this the way you treat us,” the irate shopkeepers said in an obvious reference to LG Sinha and CM Omar.
An official of the JDA when contacted told NVI that they had directions from the top “to demolish some shops that are illegal and on the encroached land.” “We only followed directions,” he said, pleading anonymity.
Meanwhile, PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti wrote on X: “Heartbreaking scenes emerge as KP shopkeepers stand helplessly by the rubble of their demolished shops, reportedly brought down by the JDA without prior notice. This comes as yet another blow to a community that has endured unimaginable hardships for decades. What began as targeted demolitions of assets of tribal communities has now been extended to KPs, further deepening their sense of alienation and loss. We urge CM Omar Abdullah to step in and address this grave injustice with compassion and urgency.”
Apni Party chief Syed Altaf Bukhari also wrote on X that JDU should not have demolished the temporary shops belonging to KP refugees at Muthi camp Jammu. “These small establishments have been the primary source of livelihood for these poor migrants for over the past three decades. If demolition was necessary, the administration should have first arranged alternative to protest their livelihoods. Such actions are disappointing, especially under an elected government that is expected to prioritise the welfare of its citizens.
I urge the administration o ensure justice for the affected shop owners by either permitting them to rebuild their shops or providing them with suitable alternatives to sustain their livelihoods.”—(NVI)
