Amarnath Land Transfer Controversy - Jammu Protests

Jammu Protests

In Jammu, mass protests erupted against the government's decision to revoke the land transfer. The people of the Jammu region generally supported the land transfer, and threatened to shut down the city on 26 June 2008. 20 kilometres away, in Nagrota, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) supporters blocked a highway It has been joined by 35 other organisations, under the banner of Amarnath Shrine Sangharsh Samiti, that have two main demands: that of recalling Governor NN Vohra and the restoration of land to the Shrine Board. Hindu groups such as the Bajrang Dal and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) protested in front of Kashmir House in Delhi in support of the land transfer. The situation in Jammu suddenly deteriorated after Kuldeep Raj committed suicide on 23 July and his body was mishandled and dishonoured by the police. Slowly, protests spread to other parts of Jammu. A curfew was imposed in many districts. Protesters claimed that an economic blockade of the Kashmir Valley was being imposed by stopping traffic on the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway. The "economic blockade" theory was however fiercely contested, with the Government of India, the Army, the District Administration, SASB maintaining that there was no blockade. BJP called the blockade "a lie perpetuated by the ISI", of which there was no compelling evidence, and maintained the people of the Valley were being misled with a false propaganda, aiding the designs of separatists. One person was killed and another injured on 6 August 2008 when the Army fired to disperse a violent mob, which blocked the Jammu-Pathankot Highway in Kathua district. Two protesters were killed and eight injured as police opened fire to quell a mob in Samba district on 1 August 2008 Conversely there were also Muslims who, backed by the local Muslim federation and the Muslim Gujjar community, who supported the demands of the Hindus of Jammu. There were, however, reports of Hindu rioters in Jammu attacking and burning at least 72 Muslim homes during the weeks of violent protests.

Shri Amarnath Yatra Sangharsh Samiti convener Leela Karan Sharma said on 6 August 2008 that nothing short of revocation of the land transfer to Amarnath Shrine Board would be acceptable. He opined that the state government was responsible for flaring religious sentiments by allowing construction of the Muslim Jama Masjid at Baltal, yet not allowing a temporary structure for the benefit of Hindu yatris.