SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor’s administration on Friday authorized the allocation of evacuee property, abandoned by individuals who relocated in 1947, granting ownership rights to refugees from Pakistan-Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (POJK), and from Pakistan.
J&K L-G Manoj Sinha, who leads the administrative council, sanctioned the proposal to allocate evacuee property to over 40,000 families who were displaced during the conflicts of 1947, 1965, and 1971, or are refugees from West Pakistan. “This decision will grant full ownership rights over evacuee property to displaced individuals,” a senior J&K administration functionary told The New Indian.
The L-G administration has instructed the Custodian department “to allocate the property to the displaced individuals within a specified timeframe. The Custodian General has been tasked with ensuring appropriate safeguards to prevent any misuse, particularly unauthorized encroachments on evacuee property.
The administration has issued orders for the timely processing of applications within 30 days. “The entire procedure is anticipated to be completed within six months, offering significant relief to the displaced individuals,” the official added.
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The total area of the allocated property will comply with the land ceiling stipulated by the Cabinet Order of 1954 and the ceiling under the Jammu and Kashmir Agrarian Reforms Act, of 1976.
The decision addresses the demands of all concerned families, who have been seeking ownership rights for several decades. The Government has consistently committed to extending benefits to the displaced individuals,” the official said.
Evacuee property belonged to individuals who, due to the creation of the Dominions of India and Pakistan or because of civil unrest or the fear of such disturbances, left J&K after March 1, 1947. These evacuees may now reside in any area currently part of Pakistan or in any territory under the operational control of the Pakistan Armed Forces, according to officials. Previously, such property was non-transferable, and even the close relatives of evacuees had been unable to obtain ownership rights over these properties.
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The latest decision follows just a month after the Lieutenant Governor granted ownership rights on State land to refugees from West Pakistan residing in J&K. Following the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019, the L-G administration granted domicile rights to these refugees.
According to official records, 31,779 such families relocated from POJK to J&K in 1947. Additionally, over 10,000 displaced families migrated to Jammu during the Indo-Pakistan wars of 1965 and 1971. Of these, 3,500 families were displaced during the 1965 conflict, and 6,565 families were displaced in 1971.