Jammu and Kashmir force resorted to the use to minor lathi-charge against agitating families, who held a demonstration demanding extension of JJB scholarship forms on Tuesday.
The agitating people, including women, had come from different villages from across the district to submit the forms for scholarship meant for children under Below Poverty Line and Antodya category. “A number of them assembled outside the office of Juvenile Justice Board and blocked Panja Chowk to Mandi road, raising slogans against the authorities,” eye witnesses said.
They further said, “It seems the people were not properly informed about the scheme. When they came to know that the last date for form submission was already over, they demanded an extension so that the benefits reach the ones they are meant for.”
Due to the demonstration, the main road got blocked and traffic came to a standstill for over an hour. Subsequently, a team of police, led by SHO Rajouri Tahir Khan, reached the spot and tried to pacify the protesters, but the agitating families refused to end it.
“The protesters cited a recent protest, wherein the authorities had assured that the matter would be resolved, but nothing was done,” eye witnesses said.
Later, the cops resorted to lathi-charge to disperse the crowd and managed to restore traffic. However, locals expressed strong resentment against the action taken by the police.
They said, “No senior officer from the district administration came to us to talk to it out even after we had been protesting peacefully for around an hour and a half. They sent the police, who resorted to lathi-charge to hush our voice, the poor people’s voice.”