Envoys meet Jammu groups

Politicians and members of civil society apprise delegation of situation

Fact-finding trip: The delegation of 25 Ambassadors arriving at the High Court in Jammu on Thursday. They later met Chief Justice Gita Mital.

Twenty-five Ambassadors, on the second day of their visit to J&K, met several senior officials, Army officers and groups supporting the revocation of Article 370 and the introduction of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) in Jammu.

As many as 33 delegates, including politicians and members of the civil society groups, called on the visiting envoys and apprised them of the situation following the revocation of J&K’s special status and the introduction of the CAA.

“After the abrogation of Article 370, the neglected community of West Pakistani Refugees got citizenship rights and voting rights after 70 years,” Laba Ram Gandhi, head of West Pakistani Refugees, told the envoys.

‘Politics over CAA’

On pointed questions on the CAA by the envoys, Mr. Gandhi said, he informed them there was no protest against the Act in J&K. “Those protesting are doing politics over the Act,” Mr. Gandhi said.

Refugee group

Several representatives from the Balmiki community, the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoJK) displaced persons and the Kashmiri Pandit migrants shared their opinions and expressed satisfaction over ending J&K’s special status by diluting Article 370 on August 5.

Earlier in the day, the Army apprised the envoys at a meeting in Srinagar of Pakistan’s attempts to foment trouble and push in militants, officials said.

The envoys, including 10 Ambassadors from European Union countries, met Chief Justice Gita Mital at the Jammu and Kashmir High Court and discussed the prevailing situation. They were also briefed by Lt. Governor Girish Chander Murmu, Chief Secretary B.V.R. Subrahmanyam and J&K police chief Dilbagh Singh.

‘Important information’

“We got a lot of important information,” an envoy said in Jammu, as the delegation left for Delhi. “The two-day visit of foreign envoys to J&K concluded. We have had interactions with some groups of civil society, traders, political representatives, media outlets, military units and some local government officials about the current situation and their prospects for the future. Jammu visit will hopefully further widen our perspectives of the region. Unlike Srinagar’s snow-capped mountains, here seems flat, green and warm,” tweeted Afghanistan’s Ambassador Tahir Qadiry.