Tina Dabi Faces Backlash For Razing Houses Of Pak Hindu Migrants; BJP Slams Rajasthan Govt

Over 50 houses of Pakistani Hindu migrants living in Rajasthan's Jaisalmer were reportedly razed down following IAS officer Tina Dabi's order.

New Delhi: IAS officer Tina Dabi is facing backlash for issuing orders to raze down the houses of Pakistani Hindu migrants on government land in Rajasthan's Jaisalmer. The houses of Pakistan Hindu migrants living in the Amar Sagar area, about 4 km from Jaisalmer district headquarters, were demolished following the orders of Dabi, who is currently the District Collector of Jaisalmer.

Over 50 'kutcha' houses, where more than 150 women, men, and children resided, were reportedly razed using bulldozers, following which the Pakistani Hindu migrants staged a protest by putting up tents outside Tina Dabi's office.

"Our demand is we should be re-settled back to the same place or some other place," one of the protesters said.

According to the administration, the displaced were living by constructing illegal houses on the banks of the Amar Sagar pond due to which the inflow of water to the pond was stopped.

"Arrangements have been made for their stay and food in night shelters. However, so far no instructions have come from the state government regarding the rehabilitation of such Pakistani refugees who have not got Indian citizenship. In such a situation, we can make them stay in temporary night shelters for the time being," news agency IANS quoted Tina Dabi as saying.

Earlier last month, Jodhpur Development Authority had razed about 200 structures, most of them belonging to migrants from Pakistan, during an anti-encroachment drive. A JDA official had said that more than 400 'bigha' land belonging to the authority in Rajiv Gandhi Nagar had been encroached upon in the recent past and many structures had been built on it.

It was a routine anti-encroachment drive to free JDA land from encroachment, but the residents became angry stating that they had purchased this land, the official said.

BJP Slams Ashok Gehlot Govt After Houses Of Pak Hindu Migrants Razed Down

Meanwhile, Leader of the Opposition in the Rajasthan Assembly and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Rajendra Rathore on Wednesday termed the demolition of the houses of Pakistani Hindu migrants as 'appeasement politics' of the Ashok Gehlot-led Congress government. He said that bringing down the houses of Hindu refugees from Pakistan with bulldozers shows the 'cruel attitude of the Congress government'.

"Demolition of the homes of Hindu refugees in Jaisalmer after Jodhpur is crossing the limits of the cruelty of humanity," Rajendra Rathore said in a video statement.

He also said that Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot should stop playing politics of appeasement with the Hindu refugees who returned to their land after being harassed by Pakistan.