Chowdry Ramzan-led delegation submits memorandum demanding statehood

Srinagar, Dec 16: National Conference (NC) Members of Parliament, led by the party’s leader in Rajya Sabha, Chowdry Muhammad Ramzan, on Tuesday submitted a memorandum to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, raising concerns over the continued lodging of prisoners from Jammu and Kashmir outside J&K, delay in restoration of full Statehood, and non-notification of Business Rules despite the formation of an elected government.

The memorandum was jointly submitted by Rajya Sabha MPs Chowdry Muhammad Ramzan, Sajjad Ahmad Kitchloo, and Gurwinder Singh Oberoi.

In the memorandum, the MPs said they were placing before the Union Home Minister their “collective concerns on matters of profound constitutional, democratic and humanitarian importance to the people of Jammu and Kashmir.”

PLIGHT OF PRISONERS

Raising humanitarian concerns over prisoners from J&K lodged in jails outside J&K, the MPs said thousands of families – mothers, children, and elderly parents – continue to suffer as their loved ones are incarcerated far from home.

They said many families lack the financial means to travel long distances, engage legal counsel, or even meet their family members once.

“Representations received by us describe unimaginable hardship – long and exhausting journeys, humiliating procedures, harsh restrictions, and endless waiting,” the memorandum states.

The MPs said they had met mothers who wished to see their sons once before they die, and children who had grown up seeing their fathers only in photographs.

They said that in several cases, the detainees continue to remain incarcerated despite serious charges not having been proven.

“A Kashmiri is not a born criminal, nor a threat. A Kashmiri is a human being and an Indian citizen, deserving of dignity, justice, and compassion,” the memorandum reads, adding that lodging prisoners far from their homes amounts to punishment for poverty rather than guilt.

The MPs urged the Home Ministry to review the policy of lodging prisoners from J&K in distant prisons outside J&K and to release those against whom no serious charges are established.

STATEHOOD RESTORATION

The memorandum also reiterated the demand for restoration of full Statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, recalling repeated assurances given by the Prime Minister and the Union Home Minister on the floor of Parliament and on various occasions.

The MPs also referred to the Supreme Court judgment of December 11, 2023, delivered while adjudicating challenges to Article 370 and the reorganisation of J&K.

They noted that the court recorded the statement of the Union of India that statehood would be restored “at the earliest and as soon as possible,” and directed that democratic processes, including elections, be completed.

Following the successful conduct of elections and formation of an elected government, the MPs said people of J&K now legitimately expect that these assurances would be honoured in letter and spirit.

“The continued delay in restoring statehood is causing democratic, administrative, and emotional distress and is increasingly felt as a denial of constitutional dignity,” the memorandum said, urging the Centre to initiate clear, concrete, and time-bound steps for early restoration of full Statehood.

BUSINESS RULES

The MPs also highlighted that despite the formation of an elected government, the Business Rules governing the functioning of the administration in J&K have not yet been notified.

They said this absence had resulted in ambiguity, overlap of authority, and uncertainty in governance, impeding effective decision-making and public accountability.

The NC MPs said that the non-notification of Business Rules had diluted the authority of elected representatives and undermined the spirit of representative democracy.

The memorandum urged the Centre to notify the Business Rules at the earliest to ensure smooth and transparent governance in accordance with democratic norms and constitutional propriety.

Concluding the memorandum, the MPs said that restoration of statehood in line with Supreme Court observations, notification of Business Rules, and humanitarian justice for affected families were central to restoring trust, dignity, and democratic normalcy in J&K.

“This is not merely an administrative matter, but a test of our collective commitment to constitutional values, federalism, and human compassion,” the memorandum said, urging the Union Home Minister to take appropriate action at the earliest.