A Kashmiri University Professor among three employees have been charged under Article 311 and terminated from service by J&K administration without any inquiry.
The sacked employees have been accused of working against the “security of the state” and shown the door in an order issued by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha under Article 311.
The trio has been identified as Altaf Hussain Pandit, a Professor at the Department of Chemistry in the University of Kashmir, Mohd Maqbool Hajam, a teacher in the School Education department and Ghulam Rasool, a J&K Police constable.
This is part of the administration’s wider crackdown on secessionist and anti-national elements in Jammu and Kashmir. J&K admin has called it a drive against ‘’terror’’ elements who have managed to sneak into the system under previous regimes and continue to propagate anti-national acts which can pose law and order problems.
The admin has set up a committee headed by Chief Secretary for scrutinising and recommending such cases under Article 311 (2) (c). The cases are then approved by J&K LG Manoj Sinha’s office.
The first order issued on Thursday states that the Lieutenant Governor is “satisfied after considering the facts and circumstances of the case and on the basis of the information available, that the activities of Altaf Hussain Pandit, Professor in Chemistry Department, University of Kashmir son of Ghulam Hassan Pandit of Wadoora Bala, Sopore are such as to warrant his dismissal from service.”
“The Lieutenant Governor is satisfied under sub-clause (c) of the proviso to clause (2) of Article 311 of the Constitution of India that in the interest of the security of the State, it is not expedient to hold an enquiry in the case of Altaf Hussain Pandit, Professor in Chemistry Department, University of Kashmir,” the order reads while dismissing Prof. Altaf from service “with immediate effect.”
A local news gatherer CNS said Pandit was actively associated with Jamaat-e-Islam (JeI) and had crossed over to Pakistan for arms training. He was an active militant of Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) for three years before his arrest in 1993.
“He also remained an active cadre of JeI and worked as a recruiter. He was instrumental in organizing stone-pelting and violent protests against the killing of militants in 2011 and 2014. In 2015, he became an executive member of the Kashmir University Teachers Association and allegedly used the position to propagate secessionism among students. He also motivated students to join militant ranks,” CNS reported.
A similar order has been issued on the orders of LG Sinha against Ghulam Rasool, a staff grade constable of J&K Police from Doda and Mohammad Maqbool Hajam, a Teacher from Lolab.
The news gatherer claimed Rasool was an underground supporter of militants, “an informer” who used to tip off the militants and OGWs about anti-militant operations. He is also accused of leaking the names of police personnel involved in anti-militant operations as he was in touch with Hizbul Mujahideen militant Mushtaq Ahmad alias Aurangzeb, who has crossed over to Pakistan.”
“Hajam was an overground worker (OGW) who used to radicalise people. He is believed to have been involved in an attacking a police station in Sogam and other government buildings. Despite being a government teacher, he was always found involved in militant activities,” CNS reported.
The administration has launched a crackdown on employees who are seen to be working against the “national interest’ and around three dozen employees have been terminated from service since last year.