By ARFAT KHAN
JAMMU: Police in the winter capital of J&K have stir a controversy over its peculiar “tenant verification” exercise which focus more on seeking house owners data then tenant.
Consequently, there is panic among the house owners who are severely annoyed over this estrange exercise as it’s primarily focus only on Bhathindi and Sunjawan areas which accommodate population of a particular community.
Perturbed residents branded the police drive as ‘malicious’ and perceive it as “violation” of their Fundamental Rights of privacy to life.
We are all law abiding citizens of the Indian Union and never witnessed such exercise by security agencies even when the militancy was at its peak in J&K, avers prominent social activist and renowned lawyer Sheikh Shakeel Ahmad.
“The information sought by the police pertaining to house owners is vital in nature and reflects gross intrusion into their privacy” added Ahmad.
Its more intriguing as its only limited to Bhathindi, Gujjar Nagar and Sunjawan areas of the Jammu region, Ahmad further added.
Analysis of two forms distributed among the house owners in mentioned areas by police clearly shows there is strategic deviation from the earlier practice of initiating tenants verification.
Sources in police disclosed that Gangyal and Sainik colony areas also covered in this verification drive but interestingly the information is limited to only tenant details in these areas.
Earlier through notification in newspapers, the police used to seek tenant credentials half heartedly around Republic Day in single sheet form with declaration of the house owners.
However, in a cryptic manner, this exercise begins with focus on owners credentials than tenant, rue Rafi Mir.
Under the garb of tenant verification, the police are collecting vital details of house owner’s family members which includes GPS location, House photo, photo of family members with mobile numbers, details of all vehicles, current and previous address, copy of Adhaar card/pan card/DL/EPIC, rent deed, construction details of house and occupation of family members.
No government in a democratic setup initiate such suspicious drives aimed at only few pockets of the city which accommodate population of a particular community, said another resident of Sunjawan Rashid.
“None of us is refugee or foreign nationals then why such second class citizen treatment to us” he added.
The residents always acted with responsibility while furnishing credentials of tenants to police from time to time but the administration must clear the suspense as to why such drive with more focus on owners vital details is only aimed at the mentioned areas when entire Jammu city and its surrounding areas are flooded with tenants in lakhs from across the country, avers Advocate Ahmad.
Efforts to seek view of IGP Jammu, Mukesh Singh couldn’t be materialized. However, SP South, Deepak Digra clarified that earlier response to such tenant verification used to remain unsatisfactory. So, this time we have formed special teams of police for foolproof tenant verification process across the entire Jammu city and its adjoining areas.
This has been done so as to ensure no anti national element manages to get refugee as tenant in the Jammu which witness heavy influx of population in the winter.
“The drive is for entire region and no way aimed at only specific areas dominated by particular community.
To a queries as to why separate form seeking vital details of house owners was added with the tenant verification form when the former already giving undertaking in the tenant verification form, Digra replied “Verification team has been sensitized to skip family details especially of female members of the house owners”
But, he prefers to skip the reason as to why micro level vital details of house owners which includes GPS location, construction details and photo of residence is need in this ‘tenant verification drive’.