M A I N   N E W S

Security posts for Sikh villages
From Prabhjot Singh
Tribune News Service

CHATTI SINGHPORA (Anantnag), April 1 — The Jammu and Kashmir Government has decided to set up security pickets in each of the 135 villages inhabited by Kashmiri Sikhs.

Talking to The Tribune here last evening, the Director-General of Police, Mr Gurbachan Jagat, said since the community had refused to accept either weapons or arms licences, the Government had decided to put up permanent pickets in each of these villages.

“We approached these villages in 1997 and asked them to set up their own village defence committees, but they refused. We even offered to recruit some able-bodied Kashmiri Sikhs as special police officers (SPOs). They did not agree to this proposal either,” Mr Jagat explained.

The DGP maintained that the March 20 carnage was aimed at triggering en masse migration of Sikhs from the valley.

Here, in this biggest village of Kashmiri Sikhs, the security forces have already set up two pickets at Shaukinpura and Akalipura mohallas which suffered the maximum casualties in the March 20 carnage.

Mr Pawan Kotwal, Deputy Commissioner of Anantnag, said that the next of kin of 32 of the 35 victims had already been given employment. Most had been given Class IV jobs in the Education Department as they were only “matriculates”.

In one case, a 60-year-old woman was the sole survivor with all male members of her family having been killed. The woman had offered to adopt a boy whom the government had promised to give a job on compassionate grounds in relaxation of all rules and regulations.

Mr Kotwal maintained that most widows had been given appointment letters after relaxation in qualifications and conditions. Some of them were overaged. One widow, a graduate, had been appointed a teacher. Another who had studied up to the pre-university level, had been appointed as a laboratory assistant.

In case of the remaining two families, the Punjab National Bank and the Jammu and Kashmir Bank had agreed to give jobs to the next of kin of those killed.

Mr Kotwal said the state government had decided to develop this village as a model village. The approach road to the village would be metalled. All basic civic amenities, including regular water and power supply, would be provided.

As a confidence-building exercise, he said, the government had organised inter-community meetings where Muslims had assured full cooperation and protection to their Sikh brethren.

Mr Kotwal maintained that the Chief Minister had visited the village twice, on March 21 and 26. He had visited the bereaved families and assured protection to the Sikh community.

The village, which witnessed an unprecedented rush of mourners yesterday, is gradually limping back to normalcy. The villagers are visibly overwhelmed at the solidarity expressed by Sikhs from all over the country in not only offering financial support to the bereaved families, but also volunteering to look after the education of the “orphaned children”.

The SGPC has given Rs 1.5 lakh to each of the 35 bereaved families. A matching ex gratia has been paid collectively by the Takht Patna Sahib and the Sikh community in Patna, Bihar.

The Punjab Government has presented cheques of Rs 2.5 lakh to each of the families while the Haryana Government has paid Rs 1 lakh to each of the affected families. The Jammu and Kashmir Government has announced an ex gratia of Rs 1 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased.

Financial support has also been extended to the bereaved families by Sant Man Singh, Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee, and the Delhi Gurdwara Management Committee.

A Canada-based NRI has offered a truck each to the affected families.