Jammu and Kashmir government sacks 3 employees for suspected militant links

Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Saturday dismissed three government employees for having suspected ties to militants, reported The Hindu.

They have been identified as police constable Firdous Ahmad Bhat, teacher Mohammad Ashraf Bhat and forest department orderly Nisar Ahmad Khan.

Their employment was terminated under Article 311 of the Constitution, which protects civil servants from arbitrary dismissal but allows exceptions on the grounds of national security.

Sixty-three employees of the Jammu and Kashmir administration have been terminated since 2020, as per the provisions of Article 311, for having alleged links to militants, according to The Hindu.

Opposition parties criticized Chief Minister Omar Abdullah for not halting the terminations. Abdullah’s ruling National Conference had pledged to review such orders in its 2024 poll manifesto. The party won the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections in October.

“As per the law, everyone is innocent until proven guilty,” said Abdullah. “If there is evidence against them, and they fail to justify themselves after being given a chance, then the action is justified. However, if they are dismissed without being heard, it goes against the principle that everyone is innocent until proven guilty.”

The Peoples Democratic Party criticised Abdullah’s government for failing to protect government employees. Party leader and former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti said that arbitrary dismissals…

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