New Delhi, Dec 6, 2023
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday said that the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Bill, 2023 and Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill, 2023 will give justice to those who were deprived of their rights for the last 70 years.
Speaking on two Bills in the Lok Sabha, Shah said, “The Bill that I have brought here pertains to bringing justice to and providing rights to those against whom injustice was done, who were insulted and those who were ignored.”
He said that in any society, those who are deprived should be brought forward and that is the basic sense of the Constitution of India.
“But they have to be brought forward in a way that doesn’t reduce their respect. There is a huge difference between giving rights and giving rights respectfully. So, instead of a weak and deprived category, renaming it to Other Backward Class (OBC) is important,” the Minister said.
He said that a few people also tried to underestimate it.
“Someone said that only the name is being changed. I would like to tell all of them that if we have even a little sympathy then we need to see that respect is attached to the name. This can be seen by only those who want to bring them forward considering them like their brothers,” he said.
Taking a swipe at the opposition, he said that “those who use it as vote bank for their own political benefit…Narendra Modi is a leader who was born into a poor family and became the Prime Minister of the country today. He knows the pain of the poor.”
He also said that many members asked what has been done for the displaced? What will giving them a reservation change?
“By giving them reservation, their voice will reach Kashmir’s assembly and if anybody tries to do something similar again, they will be stopped by them.”
He also highlighted that there was an era of terrorism after the 1980s and it was horrifying.
“Those who lived on the land considering it their country, were thrown out and no one cared about them. Those responsible for stopping it were enjoying vacations in England,” he said hitting back at previous governments.
Shah also said that when Kashmiri Pandits were displaced, they were forced to live as refugees in their country.
“According to the present data around 46,631 families and 1,57,968 people were displaced in their own country. This Bill is to get them rights, this Bill is to give them representation,” he said.(Agency)
