Mehbooba urges Centre to make exception for PoK women married to Kashmiri men

Srinagar- Former Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) Chief Minister and President of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mehbooba Mufti demanded on Tuesday that while deporting Pakistani nationals, the Government of India must make concessions for women from Pakistan who came here 30-40 years back, married locals and raised families here.

“The recent government directive to deport all Pakistani nationals from India has raised serious humanitarian concerns, particularly in Jammu & Kashmir. Many of those affected are women who came to India 30–40 years ago, married Indian citizens, raised families, and have long been part of our society. “We urge the government to reconsider this decision, and adopt a compassionate approach regarding women, children and the elderly. Deporting individuals who have lived peacefully in India for decades would not only be inhumane but would inflict deep emotional and physical distress on families who now know no other home,” she pleaded.

It must be recalled that many local youths, who went across to Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) for getting training in arms, came back under the then state government’s rehabilitation policy for ultras. Many such men had married Pakistani nationals during their stay in PoK. These women also came to J&K with their husbands and have since been peacefully living in Kashmir, though without any official sanction to do so. These women have many times agitated for grant of Indian citizenship since most of them are residents of PoK, which according to the resolution of the Parliament, is an inalienable part of J&K. No decision has so far been taken regarding these women and they continue to raise families, bring up their children and engage in routine chores like any citizen of the Union Territory. The husbands of these women have given up militancy and are living as normal citizens engaging themselves in business, agriculture, education or any other bona fide profession.