Apni Party’s ST Wing criticizes selective anti-encroachment drive

Jammu: Schedule Tribe Wing of Apni Party has condemned harassment of tribal community in an attempt to evict them from the lands being cultivated by them for decades.Schedule Tribe Wing, President, Saleem Choudhary, Ex-MLA Hiranagar and District President, Kathua, Prem Lal, Kathua and Provincial President, Jammu, ST Wing, Choudhary Shabir Kohli along with large numbers of people participated in public meetings organised at Manyari and Kot Punnu in district Kathua.

In these meetings, they discussed tribal community related developmental, political and social issues.During the meeting, Prem Lal, Ex-MLA and District President, Kathua said that the downtrodden section of society still facing discrimination with regard to development of their areas.“The Schedule Caste, and Schedule Tribe communities are equally being ignored on many aspects. We are committed to their social and political upliftment,” he said and added that the political parties have befooled the communities while treating them as vote bank.

Meanwhile, ST Wing President Saleem Choudhary said that the tribal families from several areas have contacted them with complaints regarding forced eviction from the land their elders used to cultivate.“The forced eviction is highly condemnable, especially claims under Forest Right Act are yet to be accepted and settled,” he said and added that the administration must intervene and stop acting selectively.He demanded action against the officials responsible for harassing the tribal families in the peripheral area of Jammu District and other districts.

“The administration should not act selectively as it will weaken trust of the poor and neglected section of society,” he said.Besides, Choudhary Shabir Kohli, Provincial President, Jammu, ST Wing said that “The community has many leaders but they are still unrepresented and no one has highlighted their main issues like selective anti-encroachment drives.”He said that the nationalist community has been left to the mercy of the almighty by the political leadership who used them as voters and hardly fulfilled the promises made with them. He urged Govt. to stop biased approach in anti-encroachment drives.