J&K activists' Gujarat consultation: Despite RTI plea, govt refuses to give details of 8,000 "missing" persons

Dr Ghulam Rasool

By A Representative
A senior activist from the Right to Information (RTI) Movement, Jammu & Kashmir (J&K), has claimed that neither the Government of India nor the J&K government is refusing to reveal any information about more than 8,000 persons who have gone “missing” over the quarter of a century. Dr Ghulam Rasool, a physician by profession, told a consultation organized by three Gujarat-based voluntary organizations, Janpath, Movement for Social Democracy and People’s Union for Civil Liberties, that these persons were “picked up” by security forces, never placed before courts, and there is no information about their whereabouts.
“We have filed a right to information (RTI) application about them. A term has been coined in J&K about the wives of the missing persons – half widows. We wish to know who they are, whether they are dead or are live, where they have been kept if they are alive, if alive why have they not been placed before the courts of law, as required by the J&K law”, the senior J&K activist, giving a long list of activities they have been doing, said. The figure of 8,000 Kashmiris “missing” has been made available by the Srinagar-based Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP).
Significantly, the “failure” to provide information comes despite the State Information Commission (SIC) directing the State Government way back in early 2012 to provide to an RTI applicant statistics about the persons who went missing in J&K for 20 years. It served show cause notice to the Public Information Officer (PIO) of the state home department that why he should not be penalized for delaying the information to the applicant. Dr Rasool did not reveal what happened to the application, but merely said, “We are still waiting.”
In October 2012, the J&K government, in reply to a question in the state assembly, said 2305 persons were “missing” since 1989 when the turmoil broke out in the state. This, it said, was “as per the information provided by the District Development Commissioners.”
A civil society sponsored programme in J&K in August 2014, ‘Tributes to the disappeared persons and the struggle of their families’, organized by Coalition of Civil Society contested the figure and stuck to the 8000 number. CSS also contested claim of the government that around 4,000 termed as “missing” may have crossed the Line of Control (LoC) and gone to Pakistan to receive arms training but never returned.
The J&K RTI activists told the consultation -- organised in the Gujarat Vidyapeeth, Ahmedabad-- how they were “successful” in ending the lease to the army of a magnificent meadow in J&K's Budgaon district, called Tosamaidan.
“It is the most beautiful place in J&K. The army was using it as firing range since 1964, which led to the accidental death of 65 persons and causing disability to 250. The lease was put up for renewal in 2014. Information regarding the lease conditions, renewal, and deaths, was obtained under RTI. A people’s movement not to renew the lease broke out, resulting in government deciding in our favour”, Dr Rasool said, adding, “In April, the J&K government agreed to put up an eco-tourism project.”
Giving examples of successes, J&K RTI activists said, the local administration would refuse to issue passport putting applications of individuals in suspended animation, without any reason.
Abid Jilani, an advocate, said, “I did not get my passport for nearly two-and-a-half years, and I filed an RTI application wondering why was I not being issued the passport and why was it being ‘indexed’, the term they used for not providing me passport. And, I received my passport within one-and-a-half months, as they have no reason for indexing my passport. This has helped others also to obtain passport, as now authorities must provide reason for indexing passport.”

Comments

Grueling summer ahead: Cuttack’s alarming health trends and what they mean for Odisha

By Sudhansu R Das The preparation to face the summer should begin early in Odisha. People in the state endure long, grueling summer months starting from mid-February and extending until the end of October. This prolonged heat adversely affects productivity, causes deaths and diseases, and impacts agriculture, tourism and the unorganized sector. The social, economic and cultural life of the state remains severely disrupted during the peak heat months.

Stronger India–Russia partnership highlights a missed energy breakthrough

By N.S. Venkataraman* The recent visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to India was widely publicized across several countries and has attracted significant global attention. The warmth with which Mr. Putin was received by Prime Minister Narendra Modi was particularly noted, prompting policy planners worldwide to examine the implications of this cordial relationship for the global economy and political climate. India–Russia relations have stood on a strong foundation for decades and have consistently withstood geopolitical shifts. This is in marked contrast to India’s ties with the United States, which have experienced fluctuations under different U.S. administrations.

From natural farming to fair prices: Young entrepreneurs show a new path

By Bharat Dogra There have been frequent debates on agro-business companies not showing adequate concern for the livelihoods of small farmers. Farmers’ unions have often protested—generally with good reason—that while they do not receive fair returns despite high risks and hard work, corporate interests that merely process the crops produced by farmers earn disproportionately high profits. Hence, there is a growing demand for alternative models of agro-business development that demonstrate genuine commitment to protecting farmer livelihoods.

The Vande Mataram debate and the politics of manufactured controversy

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* The recent Vande Mataram debate in Parliament was never meant to foster genuine dialogue. Each political party spoke past the other, addressing its own constituency, ensuring that clips went viral rather than contributing to meaningful deliberation. The objective was clear: to construct a Hindutva narrative ahead of the Bengal elections. Predictably, the Lok Sabha will likely expunge the opposition’s “controversial” remarks while retaining blatant inaccuracies voiced by ministers and ruling-party members. The BJP has mastered the art of inserting distortions into parliamentary records to provide them with a veneer of historical legitimacy.

A comrade in culture and controversy: Yao Wenyuan’s revolutionary legacy

By Harsh Thakor* This year marks two important anniversaries in Chinese revolutionary history—the 20th death anniversary of Yao Wenyuan, and the 50th anniversary of his seminal essay "On the Social Basis of the Lin Biao Anti-Party Clique". These milestones invite reflection on the man whose pen ignited the first sparks of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and whose sharp ideological interventions left an indelible imprint on the political and cultural landscape of socialist China.

Why India must urgently strengthen its policies for an ageing population

By Bharat Dogra A quiet but far-reaching demographic transformation is reshaping much of the world. As life expectancy rises and birth rates fall, societies are witnessing a rapid increase in the proportion of older people. This shift has profound implications for public policy, and the need to strengthen frameworks for healthy and secure ageing has never been more urgent. India is among the countries where these pressures will intensify most sharply in the coming decades.

The cost of being Indian: How inequality and market logic redefine rights

By Vikas Gupta We, the people of India, are engaged in a daily tryst—read: struggle—for basic human rights. For the seemingly well-to-do, the wish list includes constant water supply, clean air, safe roads, punctual public transportation, and crime-free neighbourhoods. For those further down the ladder, the struggle is starker: food that fills the stomach, water that doesn’t sicken, medicines that don’t kill, houses that don’t flood, habitats at safe distances from polluted streams or garbage piles, and exploitation-free environments in the public institutions they are compelled to navigate.

Thota Sitaramaiah: An internal pillar of an underground organisation

By Harsh Thakor* Thota Sitaramaiah was regarded within his circles as an example of the many individuals whose work in various underground movements remained largely unknown to the wider public. While some leaders become visible through organisational roles or media attention, many others contribute quietly, without public recognition. Sitaramaiah was considered one such figure. He passed away on December 8, 2025, at the age of 65.

Bangladesh alternative more vital for NE India than Kaladan project in Myanmar

By Mehjabin Bhanu* There has been a recent surge in the number of Chin refugees entering Mizoram from the adjacent nation as a result of airstrikes by the Myanmar Army on ethnic insurgents and intense fighting along the border between India and Myanmar. Uncertainty has surrounded India's Kaladan Multimodal Transit Transport project, which uses Sittwe port in Myanmar, due to the recent outbreak of hostilities along the Mizoram-Myanmar border. Construction on the road portion of the Kaladan project, which runs from Paletwa in Myanmar to Zorinpui in Mizoram, was resumed thanks to the time of relative calm during the intermittent period. However, recent unrest has increased concerns about missing the revised commissioning goal dates. The project's goal is to link northeastern states with the rest of India via an alternate route, using the Sittwe port in Myanmar. In addition to this route, India can also connect the region with the rest of India through Assam by using the Chittagon...

Search This Blog