Stop Rhetoric, Now Act against Land Mafia

" We cannot allow the goons to mock our law and order machinery under the mask of being politicians, Policeman or revenue official"

by: Rama Sharma

Here in our state  we all know about the loot of state land by the politicians and officers but it becomes more serious and worrisome  with the recent statement of Bali Bhagat  , Jammu and Kashmir ,Minister for Forests and Environment where the minister has openly admitted   the nexus between land grabbers, police officers, revenue officials and senior politicians of the state who have encroached upon a large part of forest land.  The minister has also made shocking revelation  that  the government has information that these politicians have got the record of such land destroyed in a systematic way. Though he also assured that the records from archives would be used to   retrieve the land from illegal occupants.

This is high time, the state government should stop blame game and come clean on this serious issue, we cannot allow the goons to mock our law and order machinery under the mask of being politicians, Policeman or revenue official.

At least this minister has shown some guts to speak up on this serious issue which is otherwise not even whispered by many other politicians. The allegation of the Forest Minister is very serious in nature and needs immediate action against these land  mafias. In his statement the minister has acknowledged the influence of Bigwigs in this loot of state land without any fear of law. It is unfortunate that despite knowing the facts about the involvement of police officers, revenue officials and politicians yet no action is taken against them. It would have been better that for the sake of transparency if the minister had revealed  the names  of these corrupt politicians and police officers who till now are enjoying perks and official protocol, who instead of being behind the bars are enjoying cool air of air conditioners in the multi storey bungalows. 

Anyhow,Taking  suo moto cognizance of the statement of the minister, the Jammu and Kashmir State Vigilance Commission should also swing into action and take legal action in this matter without any further delay. Similarly, Director General of Police till now should have  at least ordered a departmental probe to identify the black sheeps in the police department who do not hesitate to grab government land using their official men and machinery, there are many instances where these policemen in proximity with Goons usurp not only state land but also private land of citizens and pressurise them to either sell off their land for peanut or just face the illegal wrath of these Goons in Khaki.

Out of 22 districts, there is no district in the state where the State land, forest land, Irrigation Land belonging to government is not illegally occupied by the miscreants and that too with the full support and patronage of the revenue officials, in fact no one can even dare to occupy one inch of land without the connivance of the revenue department. The respective deputy commissioners of all the districts should also act tough against the rogue elements in their offices and put an embargo on this practice.

Our forests, graveyards, cremation grounds, temples, other religious places, schools, rivers, Khads, wetlands, hills, plains, Nallahs and Playgrounds nothing is spared by these land mafia and our government helplessly remain mute spectator.

Our officers are brave enough to dismantle small Kullahs and temporary Rehris Pharis of poor people but what about those who have built mansions on government land , why these brave officers, Khilaafwarzi officers of the JDA,SDA, LAWDA, JMC, SMC, Revenue Department and police department hesitate even to enter the premises of these white collared goons.  Many of us might remember the statement of our former revenue minister Raman Bhalla where he had assured that the state government would invoke Public Safety Act against the land grabbers but unfortunately it was just rhetoric, not even a single land grabber was ever even arrested for usurping the state land. State Land worth billions of rupees is under illegal occupation of the miscreants who without any legal right playing hide and seek with the government, in a few cases where even some honest officers took legal action against the defaulters, these defaulters have taken the shield of our slow judicial process and the matter remain pending there in the honourable Courts and then again our government departments do not seriously pursue these cases in the courts of the law. 

There must be coordination between the executive wing, Law department and the prosecution wing of the state to act against these mafias. Let’s hope, the present dispensation of PDP-BJP act and break this unholy nexus of Police-Politicans and Land grabbers. 

Published in kashmir Times on 10th June, Journey Lines, on 11th of June, 2015.