Jammu: A dozen Congress activists, including former Jammu and Kashmir minister Sham Lal Sharma, were arrested here yesterday for defying restrictions on the assembly of 10 or more people.
A police officer said that the arrests took place at Dogra Chowk area. They were taken into custody during a protest demanding an All India Institute Of Medical Science (AIIMS) in Jammu region.
The administration has banned the assembly of over 10 people in the city in the wake of a three-day shutdown called by the AIIMS Coordination Committee.
The committee, which has lawyers, traders and industrialists as members, accused Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh of backing out of a written commitment that an announcement to set up AIIMS in Jammu region would be made before July 20.
“Instead of that the government rubbed salt on our wounds by announcing that an ‘AIIMS-like facility’ would be set up in Jammu region,” said Abhinav Sharma, a committee member and president of the bar association.
The central government has announced an AIIMS for the Kashmir Valley and an Indian Institute of Management for Jammu region.
Meanwhile, BJP yesterday appealed to the AIIMS agitation committee to call off its protest shutdown in the city and blamed the opposition Congress and the National Conference of trying to create confusion over the sensitive issue.
“Since the demand for an All India Institute of Medical Sciences for Jammu has been fulfilled, there is no justification in continuing with the agitation spearheaded by the coordination committee,” Bharatiya Janata Party state president and parliamentarian Jugal Kishore Sharma said.
Jugal Kishore Sharma appealed to the people of Jammu not to be misled on the AIIMS issue since it was sanctioned by union Health Minister J P Nadda on the intervention of the state party leaders.
Confusion is being created by political parties like the National Conference, the Congress and the Panthers Party over a settled issue, the BJP leader said.
He clarified that the proposed AIIMS would have a separate director, equal number of faculty and every kind of infrastructure and seats on par with AIIMS sanctioned for the Kashmir valley.
State BJP chief spokesperson Sunil Sethi said Nadda’s statement that his ministry would provide similar facilities in AIIMS in Jammu and Kashmir regions was misinterpreted and exploited by some political parties.
IANS
