New Delhi, Apr 29: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has directed the Jammu and Kashmir government to grant another opportunity to those displaced Kashmiri Pandit candidates who had applied for the government jobs under the Prime Minister’s package to facilitate return and rehabilitation of the community in the Valley but had failed to join their duties.
 The order was passed by the full Commission headed by its chairman Justice K G Balakrishnan and comprising of Justice G P Mathur, Justice B C Patel and P C Sharma on a petition filed by C L Gadoo, former president Kashmir Samiti, Delhi, Ashok Kaul, president, Indo-Canadian Kashmiri Forum and H K Kaul, president, All India Kashmiri Displaced Employees Forum, Jammu.
 However, Gadoo’s plea that such Kashmiri Pandit employees shall be allowed to work in the entire state and that their appointments should not be made Valley-centric was not granted accent by the Commission. He has been asked to take up this issue at the Central Government’s level. Gadoo had filed the complaint before NHRC way back in 1998.
 In the face of inordinate delay in the final disposal of his petition by the Commission, Gadoo had on August 20, 2010, petitioned Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and drew his attention to the fact that even two decades after their migration from the Valley, the displaced community members were languishing in camps having poor facilities and without employment.
 In its order, the NHRC noted that out of 3000 posts created by the J&K Government for those willing to work in Kashmir, appointment letters were issued to 2169 candidates out which 1441 have already joined duties in the Valley. About the rest, the panel observed that they might not have joined due to various reasons and directed the administration to grant them one more opportunity to join by sending fresh notices.
 Regarding the remaining vacancies, the Commission further observed that appointment letters be issued to candidates on the waiting list, if any. Or else, the authorities can invite fresh applications and the pending cases could be considered alongwith the fresh ones.
 Keeping in view the situation in the Valley, the Commission directed that proper security arrangements should be made for such appointees for which District Administration should take appropriate steps. The newly appointed employees, as far as possible should be posted near the headquarters where all the facilities including medical care and official accommodation is available to them.
 “The state government shall provide all security arrangements and their salaries are to be disbursed in time,” the Commission order. It has directed the Centre and the state governments to submit a status report on whether the Prime Minister’s relief package has been implemented fully or not two week before the next hearing fixed for June 26, 2012.

Lastupdate on : Sun, 29 Apr 2012 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Sun, 29 Apr 2012 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Mon, 30 Apr 2012 00:00:00 IST