Muradpur villagers protest against forced land acquisition, submit memo to LG

Excelsior Correspondent JAMMU, Jan 4: The residents and landowners of Muradpur village in district Rajouri today submitted a memorandum to the Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha to express anguish over the forced acquisition of their ancestral land for the construction of a court complex in the area. The landowners, a majority of whom are displaced persons from 1947, claimed that the land is their sole source of income and livelihood, urging the Lieutenant Governor to intervene and halt the acquisition and construction activities. The LG paid patient hearing to the delegation and issued telephonic instructions to the Deputy Commissioner Rajouri, directing him that land allotted to refugees should remain undisturbed.

Speaking to reporters after submitting the memorandum, Rajiv Chuni, Chairman of SOS International and representative of the affected landowners, including Sushil Kumar, Vijay Kumar, Ranjeet Singh, Krishan Lal, Des Raj, Rakesh Kumar, Sanjeev Kumar, Gulshan Kumar, Vikas Sudan, Vinod Kumar, Ved Raj, Daleep Kumar, Satinder Dev and Dharamvir expressed concern over the plight of the displaced persons, alleging that the authorities have acquired the land in the most unfair manner without consulting stakeholders. “This land has been their lifeline since 1947. The forced acquisition without proper notice or fair compensation is a grave injustice with the people who have already suffered badly due to their displacement in 1947.



We urge the administration to reconsider its decision and ensure justice is delivered to the affected people,” Chuni said. He said the residents have raised concerns about the compensation offered, which they argued was grossly inadequate. “While the administration has proposed a compensation of Rs 9 lakh per kanal, the local residents claim that the prevailing market rate, as per revenue authorities in 2018, stands at Rs 1.

40 crore per kanal. The Government must either halt the acquisition and construction of the court complex immediately or ensure that compensation is provided in line with the current market rate, the senior refugee leader said..