Srinagar, Sept 24: The people and the leaders belonging to the Pahari community are upbeat for the Home Minister Amit Shah’s upcoming visit to Jammu and Kashmir scheduled this month.
It is claimed that around one lakh Pahari people across Jammu and Kashmir have started their preparations to welcome the Home Minister.
“It is nothing less than a festival for us. Once the Home Minister makes the announcement of Schedule Tribe (ST) status to Paharis, it will mark an end of our decades old economic, political and social slavery,” said Syed Rafiq Ahmad Shah, spokesperson of Pahari Tribal Movement.
Shah, a former legislator, said Paharis have faced the brunt of violence on various fronts.
“We have remained the most oppressed community since independence. Our struggle of over five decades is now bearing fruits. We have no words to thank the present ruling dispensation,” he said, “We Pahari people will return this favour with a favour….good deed will be returned with a good deed,” Shah added.
Shafiq Ahmed Mir, one of the most vocal Pahari leaders, who is also a strong votary and practitioner of the Panchayat Raj institutions told Rising Kashmir when J&K became a union territory concerns had grown among the Paharis that since Gujjars enjoyed ST status, so Paharis were out of the electoral game.
“That provoked the Paharis. Then on December 5, 2019 I led a delegation of ex-pahari legislators and leaders to meet the Home Minister. We requested the Home Minister that after the Re-organisation Act Paharis seem to have even lost their electoral rights. We narrated the tale of our decade long struggle to the home minister. We informed Amit Shah how one community (Gujjars) was given ST status and Paharis were dropped.
“The Home Minister assured us that justice would be done. Later, a Commission was constituted. Under the same process, today our file has been recommended. Now we are looking forward to justice,” he said.
Mir said they have also heard that the Commission has recommended ST status for Paharis.
“Though nothing official has come out on this topic so far, we are hopeful that our wish would be fulfilled,” he said.
Mir added, “Since the Home Ministers both the two rallies are scheduled in Pahari community districts. So the Pahari community is upbeat beyond words.
“Around one lakh people will attend Amit Shah’s rally in Rajouri and even in Baramulla. We expect HM to make the announcement in Rajouri,” Mir said.
