Jammu Kashmir Minister Says ‘Bulldozer Action’ Should Stop | Kashmir Life

SRINAGAR: Senior Jammu and Kashmir Cabinet Minister Sakina Itoo on Friday called for an end to the demolition and sealing of residential and commercial properties in Kashmir under the anti-drug campaign, saying the ongoing crackdown was making life difficult for ordinary residents and undermining efforts to rehabilitate youth affected by drug abuse.

Addressing reporters, Itoo said authorities should focus on breaking the narcotics supply chain rather than targeting properties linked to alleged offenders. “If a youth is involved, the effort should be to wean him away from drugs and rehabilitate him. Instead, properties registered in the names of parents or family members are being sealed. This is not helping society,” she said.

Her remarks mark the sharpest criticism yet from within the ruling Jammu Kashmir National Conference-led government against the anti-drug drive being carried out by the Jammu and Kashmir Police, which functions under the administrative control of Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha in the Union Territory.

Questioning the method of enforcement, Itoo said law enforcement agencies should ensure drugs do not enter Kashmir in the first place. “It is their job to stop the supply chain. In the garb of an anti-drug campaign, don’t target locals’ properties,” she said.

The minister also alleged that enforcement appeared disproportionately focused on Kashmir compared to Jammu. “As Health Minister, I can say the drug problem is more serious in Jammu than in Kashmir, yet the visible action is much more widespread in Kashmir,” she said.

Reiterating the government’s commitment to tackling narcotics abuse, Itoo said the Omar Abdullah-led administration had already framed an anti-drug policy and introduced legislation in the Assembly. “We are fully committed to curbing drug abuse, but taking bulldozers to people’s doorsteps is not the solution,” she added.

The remarks come amid growing criticism from opposition parties as well. People’s Democratic Party legislator Waheed ur Rehman Parra described the demolitions as “bulldozer justice”, saying they endangered livelihoods and ancestral property rights.

“For many Kashmiris, protection of land and property is deeply personal and existential. Demolition without due process is not governance; it sets a dangerous precedent,”. Parra said, referring to a recent demolition in Keegam in south Kashmir’s Shopian district.