Jammu, June 2:
The ongoing anti-encroachment demolition drive at Bandi, Sidhra, and surrounding areas in Jammu has triggered a fierce political debate, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) hitting back at criticism from Kashmir-based political outfits.
Dr Varinder Sharma, Co-Convener of the Health Cell, J&K BJP, spoke out firmly today against the controversy surrounding the government’s eviction drive. Challenging what he termed the “selective outrage” of Valley-centric political parties—specifically targeting the National Conference (NC)—Dr Sharma demanded that the law regarding public land be applied with absolute uniformity across both the Jammu and Kashmir divisions.
Pointed Questions Over Regional Asymmetry
Posing a direct question to political opponents, Dr Sharma questioned the disparity in how land encroachments are treated across the two regions.
“If land can be encroached upon in Jammu, why not in Kashmir? If Kashmiris and others can settle on government and forest land in Jammu, then why cannot Jammuites do the same in Kashmir?”
The BJP leader argued that the silence of Valley-based political parties regarding similar encroachments in Kashmir exposes a pattern of deliberate, long-term political planning. He alleged that the NC and its allies have systematically aimed to alter the demographic landscape of the Jammu region over the decades.
‘This is Not Coincidence; This is Agenda’
Dr Sharma highlighted what he described as a troubling asymmetry between the demographic settlements of the two provinces. He pointed out that there is no recorded instance of Hindu residents—whether Dogras or displaced Kashmiri Pandits—encroaching upon and settling on government or forest land within the Kashmir Valley.
In contrast, he noted that entire expansive neighborhoods in Jammu, such as the Bathindi area, have been developed on forest land, with Kashmiri Muslim settlers establishing permanent residences over the years.
“This is not coincidence; this is agenda,” Dr Sharma stated categorically.
Demands for Uniformity and Demographic Correctives
To rectify what he termed a historical and demographic imbalance, Dr Sharma demanded that the government implement corrective measures. This includes a proposal to provide free land or housing to Hindu communities in a fair and transparent manner, framing it as a legitimate counter-measure to decades of one-sided settlement patterns.
The BJP leader warned that if the law is not applied uniformly, the BJP and the people of Jammu will continue to firmly back the vacation of illegally occupied government and forest land in the Jammu region without any compromise.
Concluding his statement, he challenged the protesting political parties to explain why no Dogra Hindu or Kashmiri Pandit was ever settled on forest or state land in Kashmir before shedding “crocodile tears” over the lawful demolition drives currently being executed in Jammu.
