All Parties Migrant Coordination Committee (APMCC) on Sunday demanded a white paper on the temples and shrines in Valley to ascertain their exact number and condition, two months. Committee also accused the Government of failing to provide basic facilities to the Kashmiri Pandits who recently returned back.
Addressing a press conference in Srinagar on Sunday APMCC leaders also demanded a CBI probe into encroachment of nearly 500 temples in Valley allegedly by some leaders and activists of mainstream parties in collusion with land mafia and threatened to go on hunger strike if government fails to take action in issue. “We demand white paper on the temples and shrines of Kashmiri Pandits in Valley. We want to maintain that inquiry into the involvement of Kashmiri Pandit leaders probe is must to build confidence among Pandits regarding religious properties in Valley,” they said and added 80% of over 600-700 temples, shrines and holy springs have been encroached by leaders and activists of mainstream parties, unscrupulous Pandit leaders in nexus with land mafia. Indicting one of senior Congress leader and Cabinet Minister presently, Manorama Bakshi National Coordinator said that government has been acting as a mute spectator to grave issue.
Chairman APMCC, Vinod Pandita alleged that pressure from land mafia and influential mainstream parties, prevented successive regimes from tabling Kashmiri Hindu Shrines and Religious Places (Management and Regulation Bill) in Assembly. He said that in two months government should order a CBI probe into matter on the pattern of fake encounter killings of civilians in Ganderbal and Shopian incident. However, if the government does not accept our demand, we will go on a hunger strike in Lal Chowk," said Vinod. They said the government does not have any data regarding the destruction or encroachment of the temples. Letters and RTI applications filed by us to the Chief Secretary and Divisional Commissioner has not been responded even after two long months, said Pandit leaders and demanded reopening of the Sharda Temple across LoC. “When government facilitates trade between Muzaffarabad and Jammu and Kashmir, why is it stopping Kashmiri Pandits from paying obeisance at the Shaarda Temple through LoC,” Vinod asked?
They also flayed the State Government’s rehabilitation policy for the migrant Kashmiri Pandits terming it as a "joke". “The families which have returned to the Valley are living in a pathetic condition. We recently visited the migrant quarters at Vessu and Sheikhpora. Four families are living in a single room and there is no basic infrastructure available. The accommodation is insufficient particularly for married people with children,” Bakshi said.
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