Share your story and shine at JK Monitor!🌟 Welcome to JK Monitor, where every story matters and every achievement is celebrated! We invite you to share the remarkable journey of your life and showcase your accomplishments to the world. Join our exclusive interviews that honor exceptional individuals just like you. JAMMU: Pt. Ashok Kumar Khajuria, a prominent leader of the Pakistan-Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (POJK) Displaced Persons (DPs) community, convened an urgent meeting today to address the growing discontent over the selective grant of Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.
The meeting, attended by key social and political activists, ex-Panchayat representatives, and members of the Jammu South–R.S. Pura constituency, witnessed strong criticism of what was termed as "step-motherly treatment" towards Pahari-speaking POJK refugees residing outside Rajouri-Poonch.
Raising serious concerns over the discriminatory policy, Khajuria stated, "If all POJK refugees are Pahari-speaking, then why should their rights be determined by where they reside? If the government grants ST status to Pahari-speaking people in Rajouri-Poonch, why are those settled in Jammu and other regions deprived of the same benefits? A community should not be divided based on electoral calculations or political convenience.”
Khajuria and other attendees criticized the existing policy, arguing that it unfairly excludes thousands of POJK refugees who share the same ethnic identity, language, and cultural background as those in Rajouri-Poonch. He highlighted the paradox of the policy, questioning why a family’s decision to seek better livelihood opportunities outside Rajouri-Poonch should result in losing their rightful claims to benefits.
"One brother living in Rajouri-Poonch gets ST status, while another, who migrated to Jammu or elsewhere in search of livelihood, is denied the same right. This is nothing but an absurd and politically motivated decision," he stated, adding that such a divisive approach contradicts the spirit of equitable governance.
Khajuria called upon former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to take urgent note of this “grave injustice” and push for policy corrections that ensure equal treatment of all Pahari-speaking POJK refugees across Jammu and Kashmir.
Reminding the gathering of the long history of suffering endured by POJK refugees, Khajuria noted that nearly 50,000 families were forced to flee their homeland in 1947 and resettle in India under extremely challenging circumstances. Today, their population has grown to over 13 lakh, with approximately 10.5 lakh residing in Jammu alone, yet they continue to struggle for basic rights.
He argued that while the abrogation of Article 370 was hailed as a step toward eliminating discrimination in Jammu and Kashmir, the selective grant of ST status contradicts the government's claims of "justice for all." "If the government truly believes in equitable development, it must end this step-motherly treatment towards POJK refugees. Otherwise, the entire justification for abrogating Article 370 falls flat," Khajuria asserted.
Khajuria emphasised that if the government fails to rectify this policy and extend full ST status to all Pahari-speaking people of Jammu and Kashmir, the community will be left with no choice but to launch an "aggressive agitation" to secure their rightful demands.
Prominent among those present include Ex Sarpanch Vijay Sharma, Vikas Sharma, Pt Surinder Kumar, Sdr Surjeet Singh, Ex Panch Bharat Sharma, Naresh Kumar, Smt Sunita Sharma, Smt Neelam Kumari, Gourav Raina, Rohit Khajuria, Pawan Kumar Sharma, Sarwan Dass, Pt Rakesh Sharstri, Vijay Kumar Sharma, Sankeev Khajuria beside others.