The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Saturday warned the Governor Satyapal Malik against “fiddling” with the existing state laws and the Jammu & Kashmir Protection of Human Rights. Abdul Haq Khan, general secretary of the PDP, urged the Governor’s administration not to act beyond its mandate.

In a statement, Khan said that the Governor’s administration has cleared a proposal that has turned the State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) incapable of investigating any complaint of human rights violation submitted one year after the incident.

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Furthermore, the government is planning a major change in the existing law for acquiring permanent resident certificate (PRC) in Jammu and Kashmir.

Cautioning the Governor against the attempts to “reinvent” everything in Jammu and Kashmir, Khan said that the Governor rule is a transitory arrangement and he (Satyapal Malik) should avoid disrupting the existing laws and procedures in the state.

“Governor’s administration has already taken several steps which have caused suspicion in the minds of people. Now going into the most crucial and important territory of PRC and human rights could further disturb the situation on the ground. It is well advised to the Governor administration not to fiddle with existing systems and procedures,” Khan said.

He said that the PRC is a sensitive issue and there have been complaints in the past also that some non-state subjects have acquired the certificates in spite of the foolproof arrangements.

The PDP leader said that the system of granting the PRC is an established practice and should not be diluted at any cost. “This is a matter of the identity of the state and any attempt to relax it will meet with resistance. It can open a Pandora box if the procedure is relaxed in any way. The system in vogue is the outcome of generation’s wisdom and departmental procedures. Same cannot be undone or fiddled with at whims of somebody,” Khan said, adding that it is surprising that some people in the administration are out to damage the credibility of Governor’s administration and to further aggravate the sense of alienation among the people.

“These decisions seen along with the earlier ‘downgrade’ of J&K Bank as a PSU indicates that the present administration is out to undo the existing systems in a classic display of trying to fix what is not broken,” Khan said further.