J&K Party Says Demography Panel Ignored Families Displaced Along LoC
The Awami Ittehad Party (AIP), led by Member of Parliament Engineer Rashid, on Wednesday said the high-level committee studying demographic changes in Jammu and Kashmir has overlooked families displaced from their ancestral homes along the Line of Control (LoC). The party demanded that the committee's focus extend beyond alleged demographic inflows to include the outflow of indigenous populations caused by conflict.
Addressing reporters, AIP spokesperson Inam Un Nabi said the committee cannot claim to undertake a comprehensive demographic assessment while ignoring entire pockets of population that were forced to leave their homes along the LoC. “The committee cannot claim to undertake a comprehensive demographic assessment of Jammu and Kashmir while overlooking the families and entire pockets of population that were displaced from their ancestral homes along the LoC,” he said.
The AIP demanded that the committee answer a simple question: what about families who crossed the LoC because they were fleeing for their lives? “They did not cross to take up arms or join militancy. They crossed because they wanted to save their children, their elderly and their families from a conflict that had made their homes unsafe. What is the government doing today to bring such families back?” Mr. Nabi asked.
Kashmir’s forward areas, including Jumgund, Machil, Keran, Karnah, Gurez, Uri, Poonch and Mendhar, have witnessed migration since 1947 due to conflict and shelling. The party argued that any meaningful assessment of demographic change must account for these displaced populations. “If demographic correction is the objective, then restoring the population driven out by conflict must be part of that agenda. You cannot discuss demographic change while ignoring the empty homes, abandoned land and families that were forced to establish their lives elsewhere,” the spokesperson said.
The AIP also took strong exception to the committee’s reported interaction with Rohingya refugees, saying the panel's first responsibility should be to hear the people of Jammu and Kashmir who have borne the direct consequences of conflict. “The committee must first listen to the people who have actually lost their homes, villages and livelihoods. Their story is the missing chapter in any honest assessment of demographic change in Jammu and Kashmir,” Mr. Nabi said.
The party further said the committee must also hear Kashmiri Pandits, both those living in Kashmir and those who migrated, as their migration remains an essential part of the region’s demographic history. “Do not prepare a demographic report by ignoring this important part. Go to the people who have actually lost their homes, villages and livelihoods. Their story is the missing chapter in any honest assessment of demographic change in Jammu and Kashmir,” the AIP spokesperson said.
The high-level committee, headed by retired Supreme Court judge Justice Prakash Prabhakar Naolekar, arrived in Jammu and Kashmir on Monday. It has been tasked with studying demographic changes in the Union Territory. The committee's terms of reference and its interactions have drawn attention amid concerns over demographic shifts in the region.
