A PROTEST over an accident involving some employees at an under-construction hydel energy plant in Kishtwar is threatening to explode, with the protesters dealing with FIRs even because the native BJP MLA alleges a communal angle to their agitation.
An ‘open’ police FIR was registered on December 6 in opposition to unidentified protesters, following written complaints by an ambulance driver and the medical superintendent of a government-run hospital in Kishtwar, the place these injured within the accident had been introduced.
The protesters have referred to as the police motion “intimidatory” ways to quell brewing anger in opposition to the hydel energy tasks over numerous points.
Kishtwar SSP Javid Iqbal mentioned the medical superintendent had accused the protesters of obstructing docs from attending to the folks injured within the accident and damaging hospital property. The ambulance driver has alleged that two folks assaulted him.
Whereas nobody has been arrested, police have up to now questioned 50-60 folks and try to zero in on those that ransacked hospital property and assaulted the driving force, the SSP mentioned.
On December 4, a car carrying employees of the Pakal Dul energy plant had fallen right into a gorge at Dangduru in Kishtwar district, killing two and leaving over a dozen injured. The opposite employees rushed the victims to the hospital themselves, after allegedly a delay in police and ambulance reaching the spot. What additional angered them was that no official from the corporate constructing the facility plant got here to the hospital.
Quickly, the protesters had been elevating slogans in opposition to the Kishtwar Deputy Commissioner, native BJP MLA Sunil Sharma, and Lt Governor Manoj Sinha. And later, over the alleged non-availability of specialist docs and insufficient medical amenities on the hospital. Former PDP MLA Firdous Tak joined the protests.
Folks mentioned there was pent-up anger already as final month, a curler operator had died after getting run over by a tanker on the website of the identical hydel energy mission. The protesters led by Kishtwar District Growth Council (DDC) Chairperson Pooja Thakur had then held a night-long sit-in exterior the Kishtwar Police Station, demanding sufficient compensation for the household of the deceased, together with his spouse and 5 daughters.
After that agitation, Kishtwar’s Assistant Commissioner, Income, together with representatives of the Chenab Valley Energy Initiatives Restricted (CVPPL) had visited the protesters and agreed to pay Rs 20 lakh to the household of the deceased in writing, aside from his insurance coverage declare, in addition to the deceased’s wage to his widow until the corporate is engaged on the mission.
Tak mentioned that folks had been offended on the energy mission firm for non-adherence to setting, security and employee welfare norms. “Anyone who speaks or dares problem their monopoly is silenced by the administration,’’ he alleged.
Tak gave the instance of the Kishtwar district Justice of the Peace slapping the stringent Public Security Act (PSA) in opposition to 5 commerce union leaders final month. Tak mentioned they confronted motion for merely looking for employment for locals.
Nevertheless, the Kishtwar district administration says these detained underneath the PSA had “anti-national” and “anti-social data”, and had made no effort to make amends. “There was apprehension of risk to public order and the safety of the state from them,” mentioned an official.
Within the newest case, the FIR was slapped in opposition to the protesters two days after their agitation on the hospital. Tak mentioned it adopted BJP MLA Sharma’s assault on them at a rally organised by an outfit referred to as the Kishtwar Sanatan Dharma Sabha, in opposition to “atrocities on Hindus” in Bangladesh.
Talking on the rally, Sharma alleged an agenda within the protests, and requested what the protesters on the hospital needed. “Scenario ko communalise karna chahtey ho? Ek vishesh dharam ka, chahey woh officer ho, vidayak ho, LG ho, usko goal bana rahey ho. Takleef kya hai tumko, yeh bataiye. Accident ki aarh mein, sampradayikta failana bund keejiye (Do you need to communalise the scenario? You might be concentrating on folks of a selected faith, whether or not an officer, MLA, or LG. What’s your downside, inform me. Cease utilizing an accident to unfold communalism),” Sharma mentioned.
The BJP MLA added: “If we will come to the assist of Hindus in Bangladesh and oppose atrocities in opposition to them, then defending (Hindus) right here can be our duty. And we all know tips on how to do it.”
Referring to the sooner protest over the loss of life of a curler operator in November, Sharma equated each to the scenario “created” earlier than the 2013 communal riots in Kishtwar, through which each Hindus and Muslims had been killed and practically 80 injured.
Tak mentioned: “The legal proceedings (by police) are a collective punishment to Kishtwar society as a complete for standing up and talking in opposition to injustice.”
Pooja Thakur, the Kishtwar DDC head and Nationwide Convention chief, mentioned the Kishtwar Deputy Commissioner had handed over the identical concession to the deceased of the December 4 accident because the November one. She demanded that sufficient compensation be given to the injured as properly.
Work is in on at 5 hydel energy tasks in Kishtwar district, all on the Chenab river, together with the 1000 Mega Watt (MW) Pakal Dul mission, the 930 MW Kirthai II plant, the 850 MW Ratle mission, and the 624 MW every tasks at Kiru and Kwar.
Although governments at each the Centre and in J&Okay have been speaking of employment avenues for native youths in these tasks, as per residents, they aren’t being engaged even for unskilled jobs.
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