Manjit seeks ‘justice’ for Displaced Persons, refugees in J&K

Jammu, Aug 02: Apni Party Provincial President Jammu and former minister, S. Manjit Singh on Friday strongly criticised the Central government for allegedly misleading Displaced Persons (DPs) and refugees in Jammu and Kashmir.
Addressing a meeting of the Apni Party in Vijaypur, he expressed frustration over the government’s handling of proprietary rights on custodian land.
Singh expressed shock over the recent decision to grant ownership rights to DPs and refugees from Chhamb (1965-1971) in the Jammu region while continuing to deny their longstanding demand for proprietary rights on custodian land. “These families had migrated under difficult circumstances due to hostility between India and Pakistan and had been settled on new lands by previous governments,” he said.
“For decades, these DPs and refugees have sought ownership rights to the custodian land to secure compensation and other facilities from the government. However, their genuine demand has been ignored, and instead, ownership rights have been granted on state land. This is both unjust and an attempt to rub salt into the wounds of the DPs and refugees,” he asserted.
The Apni Party leader said that three to four generations of DPs and refugees have cultivated and maintained custodian land for decades. Despite this, they are not compensated when their land is used for projects such as highways or other developmental works, he said.
Manjit criticised the government’s “inhumane” approach, saying that compensation is paid to the custodian rather than the actual cultivators and landholders.
He also called for the removal of land deficiencies faced by the DPs and refugees. “When their allotted land is acquired for government projects or canal work, they are not compensated with alternative land, exacerbating their land shortages,” he said.
The former minister accused the government of misleading the people of Jammu and Kashmir by failing to implement orders granting property rights to DPs and refugees on state land. “The government must address these issues and grant property rights to those residing on custodian and state land since 1947,” he said.
Further expressing concern, Singh criticised the closure of a compensation package sanctioned by the Central government. He claimed that although Rs 25 lakh was allocated for the DPs and refugees, only Rs 5.5 lakh was disbursed before the package was closed, leaving the full amount unpaid.
“Despite the DPs and refugees supporting the BJP in parliamentary elections since 2014, their demands remain unmet,” he said. Manjit called on the government to release the pending package payments and fulfill their promises to the displaced community.