Rajouri, May 26: On the second day of his visit to Rajouri, Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) chairman Ghulam Nabi Azad said if the party is elected to power, it won’t be a mute spectator to the plight of locals and will take all political and legal initiatives to secure the jobs and land rights of people.
According to a statement, Azad during the Rajouri visit expressed concern over the “soaring unemployment, price rise and dwindling economy” of Jammu and Kashmir Union Territory.
“The people of Jammu and Kashmir are facing multiple challenges as jobs and lands are being taken away from the local people,” he said while interacting with party workers and various delegations from Thanamandi, Kalakote, Rajouri city, Darhal, youth and other areas.
He said some regions like Chenab & Pir Panchal face more challenges since they are landlocked and are overlooked by the successive regimes with no job opportunities and economic growth.
“When I was heading the Jammu and Kashmir government in the erstwhile state, I gave special focus to the region and tried to uplift it economically. Since then, no one seems to have ever understood the needs and aspirations of the region,” he said.
The DPAP chairman said the present governing system of administration has left the people upset in the Peer Panchal region who deserve better governance at their doorstep. He demanded special recruitment drives in the area.
Azad also said that DPAP will restore the Roshni Act, saying its revocation had rendered thousands of families landless who even possessed the land from the times of Maharaja’s rule.
“As per the laws, who possessed land for over 20 years should have been granted ownership rights, the way our government did, but here the (present) government is taking anti-people measures and snatched it back,” he said and asked the party workers to ensure maximum reach at the grassroots and make people aware of the party’s “pro-people agenda”.
“We have to fight a long battle of rights and justice for the people,” he said.
On the occasion, DPAP General Secretary R S Chib welcomed the delegations who came from far-off areas to meet Azad, the statement said, adding that Sarpanch Yogesh Sharma from Rajouri and several social and political activists from Kalakote joined the party in the presence of its chairman.