JAMMU: Over a dozen activists of Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party (JKAP) were detained during a protest, deamnding resumption of ‘darbar move’, an age old practice of shifting of offices between the twin capital cities of Srinagar and Jammu.
Led by Apni trade Union president Ajaz Kazmi, scores of JKAP activists assembled near Press Club here and staged a sit-in to press for the resumption of ‘darbar move’ and later tried to march towards the city centre but were intercepted by police. Officials said about 15 JKAP activists were detained when they tried to take out a rally without permission. Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha had on June 20 announced that the Jammu and Kashmir administration has completely transitioned to e-office, thereby ending the practice of the biannual ‘darbar move’.
Now both the Jammu and Srinagar secretariats can function normally for 12 months. This will save the government Rs 200 crore per year, which will be used for the welfare of the deprived sections, Sinha had said. However, various stakeholders including traders and transporters in Jammu openly voiced their resentment against the decision on the plea that the practice, which was started by Maharaja Gulab Singh in 1872, gives a big boost to Jammu economically besides developing a bond between the people of the two regions.
Thousands of families from Kashmir used to move along with darbar to spend winter in Jammu. “We are holding this protest against the government decision to stop the age-old practice of darbar move. We impress upon the government to review its decision in the best interest of the people,” Kazmi said.
He also demanded an employment package for the unemployed educated youth.
