Jammu , Oct 1 : The Valmiki community, which was long denied the right to vote, exercised their franchise for the first time in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections on Tuesday and termed it a “historic moment”. Originally brought to J-K in 1957 from Punjab’s Gurdaspur district for sanitation work by the state government, they were not considered citizens of the state, despite residing for decades.
The happiness and satisfaction after casting votes were visible on their faces. Gharu Bhati, who voted at a polling station in Jammu, said, “I am a first-time voter at the age of 45. In my lifetime. We are thrilled and filled with enthusiasm to participate in J-K’s assembly elections for the first time. It is like a big festival for us.” During the voting on 24 seats of Jammu division under the third phase, the people of Valmiki community were seen overjoyed. During this, some voters of this community shared their experience .
An 85-year-old member of the Valmiki community, while talking to the news agency, said, “Today I have cast my vote for the first time. I am very happy. The only issue for us is that our children are sitting idle at home even after studying for many years. The poor should be heard.”
A young voter from the Valmiki community said, “Every government has its vote bank. When we did not have the right to vote, how would anyone have cared about us? Only the Modi government has understood our pain. We are thankful to them for this. They removed Article 370, after which the path of progress has opened up for us. The dreams of our children of business and good jobs are coming true. A boy from our community has become a JE. I have also been able to progress in my studies. I would appeal to you to choose a government that promotes development. Do not choose people who are promoting terrorism and wrong deeds.” A 45-year-old voter said, “There is a lot of curiosity. I am voting for the first time in 45 years. An 84-year-old gentleman is standing with me. India is the largest democracy but our rights were violated in Jammu and Kashmir due to some black laws, Article 370. After the removal of Article 370, the central government gave us the right to vote, put us in the Scheduled Caste. This is the society that gave cleanliness to Jammu and Kashmir, but was itself suffering from a disease – slavery and bonded labor.” He said that the main issues during voting are that the colony of the Valmiki community should be regulated. Our children who have grown up should be given jobs, those who want to do business should be given cheap loans. Apart from this, we have a lot of shortage of living space. So the government should settle us under the rehabilitation scheme. We should also get a chance to live in a good and clean environment. There are about 6-7 thousand voters of this community in Jammu. Will the voice of these people be suppressed after the formation of the new government? On this, he further said, “We have our beloved government at the center. PM Modi had also mentioned the Valmiki community four or five days ago. This makes our heart happy. He is our leader who has taken care of our deprived society. Therefore, there is no possibility that the government that comes to Jammu and Kashmir will ignore us.
People of Valmiki community votes for first time in assembly elections
