‘A Kashmiri is a human being and an Indian citizen’: The 3 things National Conference MPs told Amit Shah in memorandum

Three National Conference Rajya Sabha members – Chowdry Mohammad Ramzan, Gurwinder Singh Oberoi and Sajad Ahmad Kitchloo – met Shah in Delhi on Tuesday. Ramzan also submitted a memorandum to Shah.

Reminding the Home Ministers of his and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s promise on the floor of the House on restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir and of the Supreme Court judgement, the National Conference leaders urged Shah to “initiate clear, concrete, and time-bound steps for the early restoration of full statehood”.

“Following the successful conduct of elections and the establishment of an elected government, the people of Jammu and Kashmir now legitimately expect that the assurances given by the Government and recorded by the Hon’ble Supreme Court will be honoured in letter and spirit. The continued delay in restoring Statehood is causing democratic, administrative, and emotional distress and is increasingly felt as a denial of constitutional dignity,” the memorandum reads. “We humbly urge the Government of India to initiate clear, concrete, and time-bound steps for the early restoration of full Statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, in keeping with constitutional principles, judicial observations, and the assurances already given at the highest level.”

The memorandum also called on the Home Minister to consider reviewing the policy of shifting prisoners outside the union territory and to release those against whom no serious charges are established.

“We place this issue before you with deep pain and humility. Thousands of families in Jammu and Kashmir – mothers, children, and elderly parents – continue to suffer because their loved ones are lodged in prisons far away from the Union Territory. Many of these families do not have the financial means to travel long distances, engage legal counsel, or even meet their family members once,” says the memorandum. “A Kashmiri is a human being and an Indian citizen, deserving of dignity, justice, and compassion. The continued lodging of prisoners far from their homes inflicts suffering not only on detainees but also on innocent families, amounting to punishment for poverty rather than for guilt.”

The plight of prisoners, especially those lodged in jails outside Jammu and Kashmir, is an emotive issue in the Valley, and the former chief minister and National Conference rival Mehbooba Mufti has already approached the J&K High Court seeking their shifting back to the union territory.

The National Conference leaders have also asked Shah to issue a notification for the transaction of business rules, saying its absence has resulted in “overlap of authority”. Even as more than a year has passed since the government was formed in Jammu and Kashmir, the Centre is yet to notify the business rules, leading to clashes between the elected government and the Raj Bhawan. The Raj Bhawan has often been accused of overstepping its authority and encroaching on the domain of the elected government.

The opposition criticised the National Conference memorandum as an “apology letter”, saying it has forgotten its promise of seeking the return of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status.

“So, the facade of NC ‘fighting’ for Article 370 is over. From promising special status in elections to now requesting ‘business rules’. Apology letter,” Peoples Democratic Party leader and legislator Waheed Para said in a post on X while posting a copy of the memorandum.