Kashmiri Pandits protest relief rations’ merger into food security act, cry conspiracy

JAMMU: Internally displaced Kashmiri Pandits held a sit-in protest in Jammu on Wednesday against J&K administration's decision to integrate their relief rations into National Food Security Act, terming the move a "conspiracy" to dilute their migrant status and infringe on their rehabilitation rights.

On a joint call from United Alliance of Kashmiri Displaced Community, Panun Kashmir, and other organizations representing migrant Kashmiri Pandits, the community members marched to relief commissioner’s office in Jammu.

"We urge the authorities to reconsider the decision pragmatically and address the community's genuine concerns," a protester said, adding, otherwise they will intensify their agitation.

Shiv Sena (UBT) functionaries joined the protest. “The migrant status is not a govt dole, but a documented proof of the atrocities and displacement faced by Kashmiri Pandits during the 1990s,” the party’s J&K unit president Manish Sahni said.