New Delhi: Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has alleged that Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha is advancing “a broader agenda to disempower Muslims” in the Union Territory, following the dismissal of two government employees on October 30 for security-related reasons under Article 311 of the Constitution.
In a post on X, Mufti, who also heads the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said “First they (Muslims) face marginalisation through biased reservation policies as revealed by recent disclosures on reservation certificates in J&K and now they endure wrongful dismissals with the judge, jury and executioner all on one side”.
After Jammu and Kashmir was bifurcated and downgraded into a Union territory by the BJP-led Union government in 2019, the LG administration has dismissed several government employees on security grounds, The Wire reported.
Official figures indicate that at least 80 employees, including police personnel, have been removed from service under Article 311(2)(c), which allows termination “in the interest of the security of the state” without providing the affected individuals an opportunity to defend themselves.
The National Conference has also taken up the issue in its 2024 J&K Assembly election manifesto, promising to “review and correct” what it has called an “unjust” policy if it returns to power.
Responding to questions from reporters, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said that the two recently dismissed teachers should be given an opportunity to present their side of the story. He noted that in the past, many employees terminated under Article 311 were reinstated after courts reportedly found no incriminating evidence against them.
Abdullah emphasized that every individual deserves a fair chance to defend themselves, adding that it was better to rely on legal processes to punish those genuinely guilty rather than dismissing employees based solely on suspicion. Such actions, he said, were ultimately harmful to everyone.
His comments came in the wake of the termination of two teachers — Ghulam Hussain and Maajid Iqbal Dar — from the School Education Department in Jammu and Kashmir. Both men are residents of Rajouri district.
According to an order issued by the Union Territory’s General Administration Department, the Lieutenant Governor had determined, after reviewing the facts and available information, that the conduct of the two teachers warranted their dismissal from service. The brief order, however, did not elaborate on the specific “activities” or “information” that formed the basis for their termination.