Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) President Mehbooba Mufti has said that since the abrogation of the special status of Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) in 2019, people in the territory have been gripped by growing insecurity over their land, jobs, and resources.
Speaking to reporters in Srinagar, Mehbooba said that thousands of kanals of land have been handed over to outsiders in the name of industrial development since August 2019.
She questioned the Indian government’s claims of progress in IIOJK, asking, “How many industries have been established and how many locals have been employed so far? I do not see anything in Kashmir.”
Pointing to the monopolization of local assets, Mehbooba said, “Can’t our hoteliers compete with Adani, Ambani, or Jindals? It is not just hotels—land on Gupkar Road is also under lease. What will Omar Abdullah do tomorrow if he is told his lease has ended? Similarly, other people have their homes and hotels. The National Conference-led government must do something on this issue.”
The PDP chief said that while New Delhi claims that “terrorism” has ended in the occupied territory and the situation has improved, it has simultaneously made it easier to provide land to Indian forces.
Highlighting the recent eviction of the family of Asifa Bano—the eight-year-old girl from a nomadic community who was raped and murdered by Hindu extremists in Kathua in 2018—Mehbooba said the family was driven out of Chichi Mata forest area in Samba, where they had been grazing their livestock for over a century. “What justice is this?” she asked. “I urge the NC government to act within its powers until statehood is restored.”
Mehbooba called on the National Conference government to safeguard the people’s rights over land, jobs, and resources, assuring that her party would extend full support in this regard. “The government should introduce a bill to protect local rights, and the PDP will provide its full support on the issue,” she said.
Referring to the Jammu and Kashmir Land Rights and Regularisation Bill, 2025—submitted by her party for discussion in the upcoming session of the IIOJK Legislative Assembly—Mehbooba said the proposed legislation, also called the Anti-Bulldozer Bill, aims to regularize landholdings of families, individuals, and institutions who have possessed their lands for over 30 years.
