Valmikis To Vote In A J&K Assembly Election For The First Time: Which Party Has Their Support?

In 1957, the sweepers in the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir went on a strike against the then government led by 'Prime Minister' Bakshi Ghulam Mohammed.

To tackle this situation, the J&K government wooed the Valmikis living in Punjab's Gurdaspur and Amritsar and asked them to shift to Jammu and Kashmir. They were promised permanent residency and all associated rights.

However, as is well known now, those promises were never fulfilled.

Nowhere People

Meena Gill tells Swarajya: "In 2001, when I applied to pursue an MBBS degree, I was required to submit my residency proof. When I approached the authorities, I found out that my caste was not recognised as a permanent resident of Jammu and Kashmir, and I couldn’t be issued a permanent residency certificate, which is essential for domicile status."

"Additionally, the authorities said that if people from our community wanted state jobs, they were only allowed to work as cleaners in the municipal corporation."

This was a shocking revelation for the entire community.

"Until the 2000s, most of our community was only employed in cleaning jobs at the municipal corporation." Meena claims to be the first from her community to pursue a career outside the degrading jobs traditionally assigned to them.

"Despite our efforts with the authorities, nothing worked out, and my dream was shattered. This setback also discouraged others who were considering pursuing different careers," she says.

"This is the third generation of our community in Jammu, fighting for our rights," says Meena.

It wasn’t until article 370 and 35A were rendered infructuous in 2019 — 18 years after she first applied — that Meena and her community could start thinking about new opportunities. It was only after the legislative triumph of the Centre with regard to article 370 on 5 August 2019 that Valmikis of J&K had the legal right to pursue education, employment, and property ownership in the state.

"For years, seeing my struggles, many youngsters dropped out of school, convinced there was no future for them, and turned to odd jobs in the informal sector."

"This also led some into undesirable activities. However, now, like me, many are returning to education and aiming for decent jobs," she adds.

The Valmikis of the state have also found themselves vulnerable to predatory conversions by Christian and Muslim outfits.

A small tour of the Valmiki colony in Jammu confirmed our hunch, as we saw posters of many 'pastors' and evangelists put up on every other post and pillar.

'Congress Misled Us For Years'

Even before the abrogation of article 370 and 35A in 2019, Gharu Bhatti, president of the Valmiki Samaj Trust, has been vocal about restoring dignity to the community and providing them with domicile certificates.

"We blindly voted Congress during elections, before 2019. But we now realise that it was jhoote ashwasan (false promises) and nothing else. They kept on giving us hope that our struggles would see an end, but nothing was done about it," says Bhatti.

Since 2014, some Valmikis slowly began drifting towards the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) because of Narendra Modi.

According to Bhatti, they switched loyalties completely in 2019. Now that the community is eligible to vote in the assembly elections for the first time ever, Bhatti claims they are planning on voting for the BJP en masse.

Bhatti says that the Valmikis are 50,000 strong in the state, and their strength in the Valmiki Colony may be around 5,000. A sizeable number of men still work for the Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC). After the targeted killings in the Kashmir Valley in the late 80s and early 90s, Valmikis, along with other Hindus, left the valley for Jammu.

They could not procure loans, as the banks did not sanction them because of the non-availability of domicile certificates.

These Valmiki families had left behind whatever land and resources they had back in Punjab, and now suddenly found themselves in a precarious position where they could not go out of J&K to study or work.

"We were called choodas (chuhra) before, but thankfully, that has changed. We are now known as Valmikis, and that has given us a sense of dignity," Bhatti adds.

'Dignity Has Been Restored'

"The most important thing is, our long-lost dignity has been restored," says Vijayanand Gill, sipping his cup of tea, also asking us to have it before it turns cold.

He too, like Meena and Gharu, has come to be an ardent supporter of Prime Minister Modi and the BJP ever since the amendment was made to article 370 and 35A.

"Our women had no rights. If they married outside, their claims over ancestral property would be null and void. What sort of a society invites us all the way to clean their mess promising equal rights and leaves us in a lurch for more than 60 years?" he asks.

Gill believes that the separatists and their properties remain safe in Kashmir, whereas the 'nowhere people' have nowhere to go, literally. They were neither provided domicile certificates nor any recognition by the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir.

"We were among the people who chanted Bharat Mata Ki Jai. Of course, they did not like it," he says, nodding his head in regret.

Many in Jammu, Valmikis included, are witnessing the changes around them. With barely any stone pelting since 2019 and the national flag hurled high, they feel that the integration has only begun, but there's a long way to go before "outsiders" finally feel at home in the region.

'Modi Ne Izzat Diya Hain'

Mahinder Das, 79, is the caretaker of the temple dedicated to Maharshi Valmiki, located adjacent to the narrow entrance of the Valmiki Colony.

He is one of the seniors who has seen violence, and discrimination in the valley for decades and has been wishing for the betterment of his community.

According to Das, Valmikis could not get any other jobs earlier and were denied a seat in educational institutes in the valley.

"We were treated as outcasts. They just want us to sweep their streets and clean their garbage. Nothing else," he says, as his speech is partially impaired. Das suffered from a stroke a few years ago, and that left his one side paralysed.

"Modi ne accha kaam kiya hai. Roti, pani diya, aur izzat bhi," he says. He believes that the actions of the current government have restored their dignity.

Das feels that the Valmikis' voices are heard today, and they are finally eligible to vote in the state assembly elections. He is happy that the younger generation, including his children, are getting educated and migrating to other cities in search of better job opportunities.

They are beginning to try their hand at business too.

"From being denied entry into homes and not even getting water to drink to sharing the same benches in schools and colleges, it is a big transition for us," he adds.

"Valmikis who got converted to Islam are not given respect in the valley even today. They are called 'masallis' by the Muslims there. Some from our community thought that their integration with the Kashmiri society would be complete if they took up their faith and way of life, but that remains a lie," he adds.

Das' philosophy in life is this: "Heart like door, open with ease, very very little key," he says, breaking into laughter.

'Discrimination Exists Even Today'

Swarajya also spoke with Manga Mattoo, who continued his father’s work as a safai karamchari (sanitation worker) and whose family was part of the first migrants from Punjab.

"Due to the lack of opportunities, my eldest son, now 27, had to follow the same path and works as a safai karamchari. Our community’s youth faced barriers in obtaining domiciles, which blocked them from pursuing professional courses."

He continues, "My younger son dropped out of school in 11th grade seven years ago and chose to start a small business. I took on debts to open a small shop for him at home, just so he could do something. Imagine, a young boy I tried to educate had to drop out and run a small shop because there was no future for him here."

"Initially, my brother and I had similar experiences where other children would stay away from us or make fun of our father's profession. We had to always endure the judgemental stares, no matter how 'nice' one tried to be. This is also a reason why kids from my community frequently drop out of schools," Ekta, Manga's daughter adds.

After 2019, he convinced both, his younger son and his daughter to continue their studies.

His son, after a seven-year break, completed his 12th grade and is now pursuing a commerce degree to explore better business opportunities. His daughter, Ekta, is studying law and aims to continue her education to become a judge.