The question is quite simple to answer because poor people have lost everything, including their homes, and the rich have only lost a small portion of their empire, which scarcely has any bearing on their lives. On the other side, ongoing anti-encroachment campaigns are depriving a segment of society of their tranquillity and sense of belonging. Since there are such cases, who is going to handle them? Isn’t it necessary to have a structure to handle such matters under the constitutional protections offered by the Constitution of India which give people a recourse in case something happens to threaten or violate their fundamental rights? Because the right to live is a fundamental right.
History has recorded a great deal of what has occurred in J&K over years, and it demonstrates that nothing has endured in the absence of constitutional protections. This is true of both Article 370 and the Roshini Act which permitted land to be sold at auction without any assurances of protection or rights. Even in the ongoing anti-encroachment campaigns in J&K, where the administration had previously stated that the poor wouldn’t be affected and that only those with influence and those who had obtained land illegally would be held accountable, the situation on the ground suggests otherwise—there is no distinction being made—and this emphasises the need for change.
Because the situation appears to have turned fairly unpredictable and uncertain, where people are unsure of what will happen next and who will be in line to face the unexpected music, people must now seek constitutional guarantees: that’s what the demand should be. The anti-encroachment campaigns are not in doubt, but something must be done to protect the rights of the people—and by people, we do not mean the powerful and bigwigs. When the state may be restricted from going above and beyond in carrying out its commands by not paying any attention to the protection of the fundamental rights and the constitutional guarantees of the people involved, these constitutional protections must serve as a shield for the people. To protect the interests of the people involved, we need to have guarantees because it is all turning out to be gory, and ruthless.
