Kashmiri Pandits demand reservations at all levels

Jammu, July 15 (UNI) Migrant Kashmiri Pandits today demanded reservations for them at all levels, including Jammu and Kashmir legislature, state and Central government departments, banks, public sector units (PSUs) and the educational institutions.

In a joint memorandum to the visiting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, various organisations representing displaced Hindu migrants of Kashmir, also demanded setting of three satellite townships -- each at the Central, South and North Kashmir -- with a self-governing arrangement.

In its two-page memorandum, the All Party Migrant Coordination Committee (APMCC) -- a conglomerate of 16 KP organisations -- said three Assembly seats should be reserved for Kashmiri Pandits in the state legislature in order to restore political rights to the displaced community.

They demanded reservation in central and state services, including banks, PSUs, autonomous bodies and educational institutions.

The memorandum also demanded the Kashmir Hindu Shrine Management Bill be passed in the September Session State Assembly to prevent encroachment of temples and properties of migrants in the valley.

It also demanded management of Hindu educational institutions in the Valley be returned to the Pandits.

UNI