J&K admin says, ‘domicile certificate’ only meant for applying jobs’

Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir administration on Tuesday said the new domicile certificate was only for applying for jobs and did not confer rights to own land. It also said those holding domicile certificates would not be included in the voters’ list in the union territory either.

Principal Secretary Revenue Pawan Kotwal said, “The domicile certificate is for applying for jobs in Jammu and Kashmir… It does not confer right to buy land. There were 17 lakh applications and 4.3 lakh are pending as of now. “We have rejected 20,000 applications as well.”

He was accompanied by government spokesman Rohit Kansal.

The officials said those holding domicile certificates would not also be included in the voters’ list. So far more than 12.5 lakh domicile certificates have been issued in the Union Territory.

Press Trust of India while quoting J&K Government Spokesperson Rohit Kansal said, “More than 99 per cent of the domicile certificates have been issued to those who already had the erstwhile Permanent Resident Certificate. The government has reduced the time frame for issuance of domicile certificates for PRC holders from 15 days to just five days. Holding a PRC is enough to get a domicile certificate. There would not be any further verification. This will accelerate the process.”

Asked about the fake PRCs issued in the past, Kansal said there were separate provisions of laws that deal with that aspect.

While 11,000 West Pakistan refugees and 12,000 migrants had been issued domicile certificates, around 450 members of the Valmiki community and 10 from the Gurkha community has also availed the document, he added.