Brij Lal Raina
The Kashmiri Pandit Package employees are not demanding sun, moon and unattainable things which cannot be accepted because of being impractical. These unfortunate employees are only demanding their relocation outside the Kashmir valley for their survival as they stand frightened and feel scare and fear in the valley as there is perpetual threat to their life and limb and dignity in Kashmir where they feel oppressed and suffocated as they work under threat, tension and duress so their relocation to Jammu division and other states of the country is the only feasible and viable solution to their problems. The lollipops and sugar coated pills of resolving their service matters and problems as well as the issue of promotions are secondary and their primary demand is relocation & it is a genuine demand. It is not unreachable and unattainable so why is the BJP government of centre and the LG administration of Jammu & Kashmir is insensitive and indifferent to their genuine demand of relocation outside the Kashmir valley. The Package employees are demanding and are begging for their life and so the government should accept their only demand of relocation which is a justified demand of these hapless employees and therefore without wasting time the powers should accede to their genuine demand of temporary adjustment outside the Kashmir valley. The hapless package employees are working under continuous threat to their precious lives as they are becoming cannon fodders to the guns of the militants and therefore they should be relocated so that their genuine concerns are addressed and they are saved from the gun tottering militants who are after their lives as some of them have been killed while performing their duties and the government has miserably failed to provide fool proof security to the migrant employees. The LG has assured security to the package employees but it is impossible to provide the security to all the package employees and their families. The divisional commissioner of Kashmir and the IGP of Kashmir has said that the package employees are the soft targets of the militants and they should protest inside their camps and this is enough to conclude that the lives of the package employees are under continuous threat as there is great risk to their lives and so they should be relocated to safer places outside the Kashmir. So if BJP government is interested in the wellbeing and security of the package employees ,they should accept their genuine and only demand of relocation outside the valley but the government seems reluctant to accept this genuine demand of the package employees. The centre government of BJP and the LG administration should not make the relocation of the Pandit package employees a matter of ego and thus they should pay a heed to the only and basic demand of the relocation of the package employees and without further delay accept the demand of the relocation of the package employees. The relocation of the package employees is the panacea for all the problems and ills of the package employees and therefore the powers should order their relocation to safe places outside the Kashmir where they feel frightened and oppressed and hence demand their relocation to safer places outside the Kashmir so that they can perform their duties without any fear and tension because in the valley these unfortunate package employees are working under threat and duress and so they demand their adjustment outside Kashmir to save their lives. The BJP which claims to be the saviour of the uprooted Kashmiri Pandits should come to the rescue of the package employees belonging to Pandit community and at the earliest order their adjustment outside the Kashmir valley so that their precious lives are saved from the cruel hands of the militants who are on their prowl. Therefore there is substance and genuineness in the demand of the relocation of the package employees as in Kashmir they are exposed to greater risks of selective and targeted killings as the ground conditions are not conducive for their living and working in the valley and so their demand of relocation outside the valley is genuine and as such it should be accepted by the powers. The package employees are asked to sign a bond at the time of their appointment to the effect that they will work in the Kashmir valley and do not claim any transfer to other parts of the Jammu and Kashmir. Since Jammu and Kashmir has become a union territory and any government employee can be transferred to any part of the territory of Jammu and Kashmir and so the package employees should also be allowed to be transferred to any part of the UT. For this it is most essential that the signing of the bond should be revoked retrospectively so that there is no discrimination and violation of the human rights of the package employees. The signing of the bond at the time of the appointment of the package employees should be given a goodbye as it is not only unconstitutional and unlawful but is also against the natural justice and as such signing of the bond should be revoked retrospectively to give some relief to the migrant package employees. This will clear the road of their temporary adjustment outside Kashmir valley so that their genuine demand of relocation is accepted to pave way for their temporary adjustment in Jammu division and other states of India.The BJP government of the centre and the LG administration is reluctant and indifferent to the demand of their relocation outside Kashmir as they fear that the plan of the return and rehabilitation will fail if these unfortunate package employees are transferred to Jammu division and other states of India.The fact is that posting the package employees in Kashmir valley will not further the plan and process of rehabilitation of the kashmiri pandits as the package employees in most cases live individually in Kashmir while their families are still in Jammu and other parts of India.If the BJP government is serious about the welfare, return and rehabilitation of the Kashmiri Pandits in valley they should pass the return and rehabilitation bill in parliament and that will finally pave the way for the posting of the package employees in valley with the sense of security. Therefore the BJP government should pass the law for the return and rehabilitation of the seven lakh Kashmiri Pandits in the parliament and then embark on the plan of the return and rehabilitation of the Kashmiri Pandits so that the way is finally paved for the posting of the package employees in the Kashmir valley. When this return and rehabilitation will become a reality on the ground, then only the package employees should be posted in Kashmir. Till then the package employees should be relocated outside the Kashmir so that their life, limb and honour is saved. Therefore what is needed is their relocation outside the Kashmir in safer places so that these unfortunate sons of mother India are saved from the jaws of the militants. The government should not show rigidity but be flexible and order the temporary placement of the package employees outside the valley so that they are able to perform their duties to the best of their ability.The reluctant and insensitive BJP government should shun their ego and order the relocation of the package employees outside the valley so that they are able to survive and work in a free environment free from fear ,oppression and duress outside Kashmir.The government should make the ground conditions normal so that it becomes feasible and conducive for the living and working of the pandit package employees.The ground situations are not conducive for the living an d working of the package employees and it is necerrary that the conditions should be made normal for the living and working of the migrant package employees so that they can work without any fear and duress in Kashmir.Till the situation normalises in Kashmir the package employees should be relocated to Jammu division and other nearby states so that their precious lives are not put to the risk of targeted killing.Therefore the genuine demand of the relocation of the package employees should be accepted by the powers to give some relief and succor to these hapless employees.In short it can be said that the stars will not appear in day time and bats will not appear at noon id the package employees are relocated outside the Kashmir valley and so the government should order the relocation of the package employees outside Kashmir to save them from targeted killings
The author is a columnist and social activist.
