Deal signal: Govt offers land for yatra period

Jammu, August 30: After two months, during which Jammu and Kashmir was caught in a spiral of violence and agitation over the Amarnath land row, the first signs of a deal emerged on Saturday when the state Government agreed to provide land to the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB) to raise pre-fabricated structures for the pilgrims during the two-month-long yatra.

Though there was no official word till midnight from either side, the state government is learned to have proposed reconstitution of the Shrine Board with the inclusion of a member of the Malik family, descendants of the shepherd who discovered the shrine. The other members of the Board will be drawn from Jammu and Kashmir.

At the end of a four-hour meeting in Jammu on Saturday, members of the Shri Amarnath Sangharsh Samiti, which is spearheading the agitation in Jammu, told the Governor’s panel that they would discuss with their core committee and get back late in the night. However, indications are that they are likely to agree to the government’s proposal and the decision will be announced at a rally that the Samiti has called in Jammu on Sunday.

Before going into the talks, the Samiti insisted that the Shrine Board should be given exclusive control of the land during the yatra. The Samiti said its stand on restoration of land and related issues had been conveyed to the panel during its earlier meetings.

The Amarnath land row, which has pitted the two main regions of the state against each other, began on May 26 with the state government transferring 100 acres of forest land to the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board for setting up temporary structures for pilgrims.

The Valley cried foul, saying the region’s autonomy was in danger. Governor S.K. Sinha, who was the head of the Shrine Board, was at the centre of the land row, was replaced by N.N. Vohra. As the protests in the Valley grew shriller, PDP, a partner in the ruling coalition, withdrew support, reducing the Ghulam Nabi Azad government to a minority. On July 1, the state Cabinet revoked the land transfer order, a move that saw Jammu erupting in protest.

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