If Jammu Is Discriminated, Kashmiris Will Have To Eat Apples: BJP MLA Vikram Randhawa

We will not allow discrimination to happen, said BJP MLA Vikram Randhawa during a protest in Jammu.

Jammu: Several aspirants, along with BJP MLA Vikram Randhawa, held a protest in Jammu against the Omar Abdullah-led government for allegedly ignoring Hindi, Dogri, and Sanskrit subjects in the list of vacant government posts, as the Jammu and Kashmir School Education Department had officially referred 575 lecturer posts to the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission (JKPSC) for direct quota recruitment.

Senior BJP leader and MLA Vikram Randhawa and government job aspirants on Thursday held a protest in Jammu Press Club, criticising the government's exclusion of Hindi and Dogri/Sanskrit posts from the recently announced 575 lecturer vacancies referred to the JKPSC.

Randhawa issued a stern warning to the Omar Abdullah-led administration, asserting that if the government fails to advertise lecturer positions for Hindi and Sanskrit postgraduates, massive protests would break out across Jammu.

The Jammu and Kashmir School Education Department recently referred 575 lecturer posts to the JKPSC for direct recruitment. However, they did not include positions for Hindi and Sanskrit, sparking outrage among the affected candidates.

Speaking to reporters, Randhawa expressed strong discontent with what he described as the government’s bias towards Urdu-speaking candidates while ignoring qualified Hindi and Sanskrit postgraduates.

Randhawa said, "This is our open warning. All trucks with essentials and rice pass through Jammu, and if Jammu is discriminated against, the Kashmiris will have to eat apples. We will not allow that discrimination to happen."

He warned that Jammu MLAs who have joined the current government should realise that "there is nothing left in the bogey of Kashmiriyat, and the government will give nothing to them or Jammu."

"The bogey is empty, and they should come out of this misbelief soon. Those MLAs have gotten a massive mandate from the people of Jammu, and if they do not leave the government soon, all they will be left with is a few boxes of apples," he told reporters.

"Who is going to teach Persian and Panjabi? There's nobody here who can teach Persian, while hundreds of Hindi and Sanskrit graduates are left jobless," he claimed.

"I urge the Omar-led government to immediately address this injustice and advertise the plus-two lecturer positions for Hindi and Sanskrit PGs. Failing this, Jammu will witness widespread protests,” Randhawa said.

The BJP MLA further emphasised that this omission is unacceptable. He warned that if corrective action is not taken, all 28 BJP MLAs from Jammu and Kashmir would join the protests on the streets.