The All Parties Sikh Coordination Committee (APSCC) has reiterated its demand for extension of the National Commission for Minorities Act to Jammu and Kashmir State. The decision to press for this demand was taken at a convention held at Baramulla.The APSCC also demanded that the Central Government take serious note of the situation prevailing in Kashmir. The state continues to be in the grip of unrest over reports of killings, injuries, imprisonment of civilians, and burning of schools and official buildings. Maintaining silence on such issues will further aggravate the resentment of people and lead to the worsening of an already precarious situation, said Jagmohan Singh Raina, chairman of the APSCC.In a statement issued to KNS, Raina said that the State government should also step up efforts to control the situation. He said he was unaware of whether the situation was discussed by Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti in her recent meeting with the Prime Minister in New Delhi.Raina pointed to the fact that mainstream politicians like Farooq Abdullah have now begun taking a different approach to resolving the unrest in Kashmir Valley. If the government continues to deal with the situation as it has been doing so far, there will be apprehensions of the situation getting out of hand.
The APSCC urged upon the central and state governments to make greater efforts to address the grievances of the people and to create a congenial atmosphere for sincere talks among all stakeholders. Raina said that measures such as withdrawal of the Public Safety Act (PSA) that has been slapped on many civilians will help in creating such an atmosphere of trust and conciliation.Kuldeep Singh Bali, president of APSCC (Central), said that the PDP had in its election manifesto promised to grant minority status to the Sikh community of J&K state, but three years have passed and nothing has been done. Fauja Singh, president of APSCC (South), said that Sikhs voted for the PDP but have been ditched after the election. Rattan Singh Kanwal and Rajinder Singh, general secretaries APSCC, said that further inaction on this demand will create more estrangement between the Sikh community and the J&K government.
Er Nirmal Singh, Jagdev Singh Talwandi and Dr Jaipal Singh expressed concern on the issue of unemployment among young Sikhs living in J&K. They said that all appointments in government posts are being done through MLAs and MLCs, and the lack of a Sikh representative in the state legislature is further harming the employment prospects of Sikhs in the government.A large number of APSCC representatives from different villages attended the convention, which was also addressed by GPC (Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee) members, including Tejpal Singh (Baramulla), Rajinder Singh (Kupwara), Tara Singh (Pulwama), Devinder Singh (Budgam), and others. (KNS)