Dozens of Protesting Kashmiri Pandit Employees Detained in Jammu

Scores of migrant Kashmiri Pandit employees demanding a transfer from the Valley and release of salary dues were detained on Wednesday, shortly after they assembled here for a protest to press for their demands, officials said. On February 4, Jammu and Kashmir Lt Governor Manoj Sinha said many of the employees had resumed their duties in the Valley and directions were issued to release their pending salaries. Yogesh Pandita, a leader of the protesting employees, said, “We have submitted dozens of memorandums and even met the Lt Governor but all our pleas fell on deaf ears… Maha Shivratri, the biggest festival of the Pandit community, is around the corner but they are not releasing our salaries,” he said. Appealing to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Lt Governor Sinha for a “sympathetic consideration” of their demands, Pandita said, “We left Kashmir due to the terror threat, which has not faded. If we return, where will we go as we do not have secure accommodation?” Rahul Pandit, another protester, criticised the government for imposing Section 144 of the CrPC outside the Press Club and said they “are on a peaceful protest for the past 290 days but never blocked traffic or caused inconvenience to anyone”.