Central govt seems to be dead-set to cause unease in minds by entitling outsiders to buy land in J&K: Soz

Former Union Minister and senior Congress leader Prof. Saifuddin Soz has said that any change in land laws in J&K that entitle outsiders to buy land there will create unease in the minds of its people.

“The Central government wants to implement its pre planned agenda in J&K, which is not going to yield any advantage to it. One fails to understand the urgency of the Central government to do everything that is unpalatable to the people of J&K,” he said in a statement issued on Tuesday.

“Our land laws were finalized in the present form during Maharaja Hari Singh’s time. The paramount condition was that the land both agricultural and non-agricultural would be purchased by the people genuinely domiciled in J&K State. The popular government did not change these laws and effected some changes in these laws in the J&K Legislative Assembly, democratically. The successive governments ensured that any transfer of ownership of land took place amongst the bonafide residents of J&K state only,” he said.

“Now, the Central government seems to be dead-set to cause unease in minds by entitling outsiders to buy land in J&K. One can ask why the Central government is interested in amending land laws at this stage. The spokesperson for J&K Union Territory Govt. tried uselessly to convince J&K people that the amendment in land law was being affected genuinely. The Union government should leave all such matters to the duly elected govt. in future,” he added.

“Meanwhile, some people in Jammu have threatened agitation on this issue. They will be justified to agitate against the proposed amendment,” he said.