A report prepared by the General Administration Department (GAD) in Jammu & Kashmir has revealed that 82 per cent freedom fighters in the State hail from Kashmir Valley while only 18 per cent of them come from the ‘land of Dogra warriors’ in the Jammu region.
According to the report, “A total number of 858 persons and their kith and kin are drawing freedom fighters pension from treasuries across different district headquarters in the State”.
A little over `1 crore is spent on freedom fighters pension per month in J&K. Out of this `1 crore, approximately `80 lakhs are distributed in Kashmir Valley and rest of the 20 lakhs are distributed in the Jammu province.
“Between 2009-12, a sum of `37.02 crore was spent on pensions of freedom fighters,” the report said.
Out of this amount, `20.50 crore was spent on distributing pension in Srinagar only, `2.02 crore in Baramulla, `2.01 crore in Budgam, `2.69 crore in Anantnag while `4.19 crore was spent on pension during the same period in Jammu.
Ironically, the list of freedom fighters also includes names of those people who had participated in the ‘Quit Kashmir movement’ of 1946 against the Dogra Maharaja Hari Singh.
The Quit Kashmir movement was launched by the Sheikh Mohd Abdullah of the National Conference in May 1946 against the rule of Dogra Maharaja Hari Singh. Initially Abdullah was arrested and sentenced to three-year imprisonment but was released only 16 months later in September 1947.
Shockingly, the GAD do not have complete record of those freedom fighters who participated in the State freedom struggle.
According to the report, “records of exact age of 67 pensioners were not available with the State treasuries even though they are drawing pension since 1982”.
“Tankpiora treasury in Srinagar is distributing pension to 67 freedom fighters every month but their age records were not available with them.”
Names such as Mehra, Rafiqa, Hajra, Mugli, Zeba, Noora, Mala, Fazi, Khursi, Misra, Afroza, Rahti figure prominently in the list of Tankipora treasury without any mention of their parentage and age records.
Ironically, some of the beneficiaries have started drawing freedom fighter pension for their role in the State freedom struggle beginning 2007, 1998, 1997, 1996.
The same has raised many question marks over the genuineness of the names figuring in the list of beneficiaries.
Meanwhile according to the report, 95 people in Srinagar, seven in Bandipora, two in Shopian, 10 in Ganderbal and only one in Jammu district are receiving freedom fighter pension for participating in the State freedom struggle and Quit Kashmir movement.
There are only four veteran soldiers of World War-II who are drawing pension in Jammu.
According to the GAD report, “203 freedom fighters are drawing pension from different treasuries in Kashmir Valley while 500 are drawing pension from Tankipora treasury in Srinagar alone. A total number of 155 freedom fighters are drawing pension from various treasuries of the Jammu province”.
The report has also revealed that out of 703 freedom fighters at least 450 freedom fighters from Kashmir Valley took part in the Freedom Struggle of India, 36 from district Budgam participated in the Freedom Struggle and three of them participated in the State freedom struggle.
Ninety-five freedom fighters in Jammu participated in the freedom struggle as soldiers of the Azad Hind Fauj, four of them participated in the Goa liberation Movement (two each from Jammu and Kishtwar district), and 33 are entitled to get Swantantrata Sainik Samman.
Interestingly, a separate report of the Union Home Ministry has recorded a list of 1,807 freedom fighters entitled to receive pension in Jammu & Kashmir. The GAD officials claimed that the Union Home Ministry has been requested to provide the details of freedom fighters in J&K as per its records to reconcile the figures.
For the record sake, the Chief Minister, who is incharge of the GAD department, had claimed that no fake case of freedom fighters pension has been reported in the State.
The freedom fighters pensions are transferred to the dependents of the deceased. “When there is no eligible dependent the pension is surrendered”.