Srinagar: In a significant development, United Nations Human Rights Commission has for the first time expressed fears of demographic change in Jammu and Kashmir after New Delhi suspended the region’s limited autonomy.
The UN human rights experts went on to say New Delhi “unilaterally and without consultation revoked the constitutional special status of Jammu and Kashmir”.
New Delhi on August 5, 2019, suspended Article 370 and its corollary 35-A and bifurcated the State of J&K into two union territories – Ladakh and Jammu ad Kashmir.
The decision was followed by new legislation on land, jobs, and citizenship which was exclusive for the State subjects of Jammu and Kashmir.
The UN experts said the new legislation “overrides previous laws” which granted the Kashmiri Muslim, Dogri, Gojri, Pahari, Sikh, Ladhaki, and other established minorities rights to buy property, own land, and access certain state jobs.
“These legislative changes may have the potential to pave the way for people from outside the former state of Jammu and Kashmir to settle in the region, alter the demographics of the region and undermine the minorities’ ability to exercise effectively their human rights,” said Fernand de Varennes, Special Rapporteur on minority issues and Ahmed Shaheed, Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief.
“The number of successful applicants for domicile certificates that appear to be from outside Jammu and Kashmir raises concerns that demographic change on a linguistic, religious, and ethnic basis is already underway,” the experts said.
UN human rights experts have expressed concern that India’s decision to end Jammu and Kashmir’s autonomy and enact new laws could “curtail the previous level of political participation of Muslim and other minorities in the country, as well as potentially discriminate against them in important matters including employment and land ownership.”
They said the state of Jammu and Kashmir was established with specific autonomy guarantees to respect the ethnic, linguistic, and religious identities of its people.
“On August 5, 2019, the Government unilaterally and without consultation revoked the constitutional special status of Jammu and Kashmir, and in May 2020, passed the so-called Domicile Rules which removed protections given to those from the territory. Subsequent changes to land laws are further eroding these protections,” they said.
“The loss of autonomy and the imposition of direct rule by the Government in New Delhi suggests the people of Jammu and Kashmir no longer have their own government and have lost power to legislate or amend laws in the region to ensure the protection of their rights as minorities,” they said.
The UN human rights experts said they are in contact with the Government of India on this matter.
They urged the Government of India to ensure that the economic, social, and cultural rights of the people of Jammu and Kashmir are protected and that they are able to express their political opinions and participate meaningfully in matters affecting them.
A report released last week by Forum for Human Rights in Kashmir comprising a group of eminent Indian citizens said, “Though 12,000 of the 38,000 additional troops that were flown in to enforce the lockdown have been withdrawn, arbitrary detentions continue, public assembly is still prohibited under Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 (CrPC), and hundreds, including minors and several elected legislators of Jammu and Kashmir, remain under preventive detention.”
They urged the government to release all remaining political detainees who were taken into preventive detention on or after August 4, 2019.
“Strictly follow jurisprudence on the rights to bail and speedy trial. Repeal the Public Safety Act (PSA) and any other preventive detention legislation, so that they cannot be misused against political opposition, or amend them to bring them in line with our constitutional ethos,” the forum recommended.
They also urged the government to initiate criminal and civil actions against personnel of police, armed forces, and paramilitary forces found guilty of the violation of human rights, especially with regard to recent instances of attacks on journalists.
