In a landmark decision State Information Commission has declared Jammu and Kashmir Bank as a public authority and holds it liable to provide information under the Right to Information Act, 2009.
The decision came after two years of refusal and before the announcement the bank was given a month long period to train its staff and make its designated officials responsible for implementing the RTI Act under the section 5 of the act.
The order was passed by the Chief Information Commissioner G R Sufi and information commissioners Dr Sudesh Kumar and Nazir Ahmad. The judgment came on the basis of a number of petitions pending disposal before the SIC. Consistently the law department of bank had refused information citing its exclusion from the list of public authority institutions and the case took more than a year to be decided.
However, the bank’s counsel has showed their reservations that the law might get misused as the banking institutions are based on the trust and confidence of depositors. The SIC, while accepting the bank argument of that it has the scope to create trust deficit, has skipped imposing penalties and they say there are enough safeguards under the law to deal with such issues. The Chairman and CEO of the J&K Bank Mushtaq Ahmad has said, “Our law department is examining the judgment and we will respond at the earliest”.
Legal experts say that the bank can go for an appeal against the SIC order in the court of law.
The entire debate in the petition was about the genesis of the bank and its results find out bank was set up by the last autocrat of the state Maharaja Hari Singh on June 19, 1939 and not by the parliament nor by the state assembly. Debates in the SIC suggested the bank came into being on basis of the recommendations that Maharaja’s administration made. Public sector banks already come under RTI Act but the main competitors of J&K Bank are in the private sector, which don’t fall under the purview of the Act.
Post-partition, the bank was registered under Companies Act in 1956 also. Right now it is the only listed company of the state that has 53% of its shareholding with the state government.
No, Says The Police CHIEF
The Director General of Police Kuldeep Khuda last week denied reports that Jammu and Kashmir police personnel were to be deputed along with the Sashastra Seema Bal, a para-military force guarding the Indo-Nepal border.
Khuda was referring to the media reports that center might decide to depute Jammu and Kashmir Police personnel along the Indo-Nepal border.
It was reported earlier that at a high-level meeting chaired by Union Home Secretary, R K Singh at New Delhi, the decision to depute the police personnel from the state was taken. These men would assist the SSB in identifying the Kashmiri youth who have been using Nepal as an alternate route to enter into the Valley.
“There is no such proposal as of now. At least w
e have not been requested,” Khoda told media persons.
The state police chief, however, added that Jammu and Kashmir Police was well prepared to take up any assignment of the union government.
“We have the adequate number of personnel to be deployed in any state of the country, if requested for. Former militants who crossed over to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) between 1989 and 2009 were to be considered for the safe return through the special policy. Under the policy, the parents of the youth will have to apply to the district police chiefs of their respective districts certifying that ‘their wards want to return and live a normal life’. The district police chiefs will scrutinize the applications and then issue orders after clearance from various agencies concerned.
Government has identified four entry points – Poonch-Rawalakote (Poonch), Uri-Muzaffarabad (Uri), Wagah (Punjab) and Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi from where the youth, given clearance, can enter the state.
However, some cases were detected during the past few months in which former militants holed in PaK were entering into the Valley through Nepal route and then claiming that they had returned as per the policy of 2010. Some of the youths were later found to be re-cycled into militancy as well.
Dogs, Dogs, EVERYWHERE
With dogs on the prowl in Srinagar city attacking 51 people in a single day, state government seems to have devised a ‘novel’ way of addressing the problem while engaging the city’s unemployed youth in tackling the menace. The Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) recently advertised posts of “Caretakers for Dogs” on temporary basis for youth in the age group of 18 and 37. The job offer is open for those who live within the municipal limits of Srinagar city only. However, those living close to Shuhama, where SMC has constructed a state-of-art dog pound on 19 kanals of land costing state exchequers a whopping rupees one crore will be given preference, provided they have “experience in dog caretaking”.
Apart from taking care of around 10 to 12 dogs by each caretaker, they have to feed the dogs and take them out for a walk, before they (dogs) are sent back to their respective localities after sterilization.
But observers maintain that it’s a futile effort as by the time 40 canines are sterilized another 400 would take birth.
Apart from the cost of running these dog pounds reports suggest that it will take another 1000 crore rupees to impound all the dogs living in the Srinagar municipality limits at such pounds.
Critics blame government for being insensitive towards the woes of general public as the victims of dog bites are not provided with free Immunogulobin, something vital for dog bite treatment, while it spends crores for comfort of dogs.
While government puts the exact figure of dogs roaming freely inside the municipal limits of Srinagar city at 91,100, but critics feel that there could be well over one lack dogs in the city.
The numbers of dog bite cases have increased drastically over past one year. From 4230 cases reported in 2010, the number swelled to 7257 in 2011.
Sleaze Over MOUNTAINS
Glittering otherwise in the corridors of power, they are sometimes caught on wrong foot. Sex scandal whenever is unveiled- high profile people are part of it. There is a new revelation sending shock waves. A 15-year-old girl from Kishtwar has recorded her statement before the Chief Judicial Magistrate Kishtwar, Ashwani Kumar under section 164 Rpc. FIRs have been registered under sections 363 Rpc and 376 at Jammu and Kishtwar respectively.
The teenage girl alleged she was forced into sex trade by a woman who hails from her village in Kishtwar and is married to a man presently residing at Durga Nagar Jammu. Victim alleged that she was repeatedly raped by an officer of Deputy Commissioner rank at his residence in Channi Himmat during her captivity with alleged kingpin of sex racket Santosha Devi. The statement of the victim comes in wake of the missing FIR registered by the cousin brother of the victim.
The girl felt in trap when she was lured that they will get her married. Before being assaulted by the ‘big shots’, she was raped by Ashwani Kumar, chowkidar of deputy commissioner’s residence. After this she was shifted to Patnitop and raped by a hut owner. The girl is willing to identify the hut and its owner. This started her ordeal including her stay with the 60-year-old man. Her stay with old man provided her route to escape, when she found other door of washroom open.
Apprehending a threat to her life, police has shifted victim to a “safe house”.
This is tip of ice berg, there are reports that four to five minor girls from Padyarna area are missing and people have apprehension that the missing girls might have fell in the trap of sex racket and demanded that police should inquire about the whereabouts of those missing girls from the accused Saroja Devi, Santosha Devi, Ashwani Kumar and other local peoples of Padyarna who were involved in the case of flesh trade. Even after inquiry is anything going to happen? Or will it be the same as happened to earlier cases. Wait and watch
Security, Even Panchs NEED
Idea of electing Panchs and Sarpanchs was to have better governance at grass root level. However, the very idea is hit by a concern- fear for life. Panic gripped the Panchs and Sarpanchs after some posters in the name of militants appeared in some villages of South Kashmir recently asking the panchayat members to quit. Fearing for their life, they threatened to resign if government fails to provide them security cover. They say if anyone of them is harmed, government will be entirely responsible. They also had written to concerned minister seeking security. The members of panchayat say in case government fails to address their concerns, they will be left with no option other than to accept the dictates of militants. Government responded positively saying their security would be reviewed “and taken care of accordingly”. In the Panchayat elections held in March 2011, 31000 representatives were elected. Though there has been little devolution of powers and obviously less impact on ground. But no matter what is scene of their work. They too want to feel important!
According to AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
A sluggish legal system and long delays in trials were huge impediments in delivering justice to the aggrieved in Kashmir, says a team of Amnesty International. The team comprising Saptarshi Mandal and Sahana Basavapatna also reiterated the call by the global human rights watchdog about the abrogation of Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) and Public Safety Act (PSA) in the state. The team interacted with a cross-section of people. Despite the cases being lodged 10 years back the investigations are still incomplete. Hinting at giving mainstream leaders the go by this time, the team said that violence- affected families were the primary focus of their current visit. The team is on a 12-day visit to Valley to take firsthand account of the latest developments in respect of human rights situation in the state with special ‘focus’ on Public Safety Act and AFSPA. They have met separatist leaders, human rights activists, lawyers, and had also had a meeting with the Inspector General of Police (IGP) for Kashmir, SM Sahai.
The main idea remained to build on the work done in 2010, which was released in a report in 2011 on ‘lawless law’. The team also expressed serious concern on mass graves in the state earlier discovered by the Investigative wing of the State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) that as many as 2156 bodies are buried in unmarked graves at 38 sites since militancy began in 1990. Though refusing to comment on the issue, they claimed to have gathered details on the issue. They said SHRC has been doing some good work, but it has itself complained that many of its recommendations are not being carried out.
