Srinagar, October 15 (Scoop News)- Expressing concern over the eviction of Muslim shopkeepers of Leh on the pretext of road widening by the local administration,All Party Hurriyat Conference (APHC) on Tuesday pointed out that the administration was giving them minimal monetary compensations for dismantling their shops- the only source of livelihood for them.
According to APHC spokesman, a delegation of Muslim shopkeepers from Leh met APHC Chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and apprised him about the discrimination and problem faced by them at the hands of local administration.
They said they had business in the area from decades onwards, but the administration was safeguarding the interests of particular section of people and even protecting the dismantling of their shops by keeping them outside the ambit of the new master plan for Leh area.
The delegation told Mirwaiz that the district administration did not paid heed to their complaints. They further informed that Muslim shopkeepers in Leh were targeted following a conspiracy and the role of Chairman LAHDC in the whole affair was partisan.
Mirwaiz condemned the government inaction to implement the court orders regarding stopping the dismantling of Muslim owned shops saying it show their helplessness.
He said that Kashmiri Muslims traders were part of the Leh trade economy and it was highly foolish that they can be stopped merely on the regional basis.
Mirwaiz said Jammu Kashmir was geographically united region and people can’t be stopped to trade mere on the basis that he belongs to a particular region.
MORE AT http://scoopnews.in/det.aspx?q=32749