Convener News Desk
New Delhi, Jan 27: Ahead of the forthcoming Budget Session of Parliament, National Convenor of the Jammu and Kashmir Students Association (JKSA), Nasir Khuehami, on Tuesday held an extensive meeting with Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament Sajjad Kichloo in New Delhi to raise a range of pressing issues affecting students and marginalised communities from Jammu and Kashmir.
The meeting, which lasted over three hours, focused on long-pending student welfare concerns, the hostel accommodation crisis at Jamia Millia Islamia, and the growing incidents of harassment and violence against Kashmiri shawl sellers in various parts of the country.
During the interaction, Khuehami apprised the MP of the worsening situation faced by Kashmiri students studying outside the Union Territory, particularly highlighting the acute hostel shortage at Jamia Millia Islamia. He informed Kichloo that despite repeated representations by JKSA, students—especially those from economically weaker backgrounds—continue to face uncertainty due to lack of transparent allotment mechanisms, resulting in academic disruption and psychological distress.
The discussion also focused on the alarming rise in harassment, intimidation and physical assaults against Kashmiri shawl sellers and traders in states such as Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Uttarakhand and other regions. Khuehami said many traders, who have pursued this livelihood for decades, have faced violence, extortion, forced evictions and social profiling, creating fear and insecurity.
He noted that JKSA has consistently raised these incidents through formal communications with the Union Home Ministry, state governments and Directors General of Police, besides engaging in sustained advocacy with various authorities. However, he said the absence of a structured institutional mechanism has allowed such incidents to recur.
Khuehami stressed the need for a centralised inter-state protection framework to ensure the safety, dignity and livelihood rights of Kashmiri traders, particularly during peak trading seasons. He also raised broader student-related issues, including scholarship delays, accommodation challenges and the need for greater institutional sensitivity towards students from conflict-affected regions.
Responding to the concerns, MP Sajjad Kichloo assured that he would raise the issues during the Budget Session of Parliament. Expressing concern over the Jamia hostel crisis, he said denial of basic accommodation undermines access to education and violates constitutional principles of equality and dignity.
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