JAMMU: The members of the Working Committee of Dogra Sadar Sabha (DSS) accompanied by the office-bearers of the Youth Wing, today visited the ongoing protest by sportspersons at the Maharaja Hari Singh Ji Statue, Jammu, and expressed solidarity with the protestors seeking justice, transparency and fair recognitioof their sporting achievements.
The delegation met the protesting sportspersons, heard their grievances and assured them of the Sabha’s support in their peaceful pursuit of justice.
Interacting with the protesters, Col. Karan Singh (Retd.), President DSS, said the issue concerns not merely employment but the dignity of sportspersons, sanctity of merit and the confidence of Jammu and Kashmir’s youth in the system.
Adv. Gambhir Dev Singh Charak, Working President DSS, called upon the Government to engage with the protesting athletes and players without further delay and establish a credible, impartial and time-bound mechanism to mitigate their grievances. The Sabha maintained that any genuine discrepancies or irregularities, if established, must be addressed through appropriate corrective action.
The members of the Youth Wing of DSS also called for a structural overhaul of the Sports Quota framework, with annual recruitment, transparent merit scoring, an independent grievance mechanism and a stronger dedicated Sports Cadre, so that deserving athletes are not denied opportunities due to administrative delays, vacancies or procedural ambiguity. Merit must be transparent, verifiable and protected.
The Sabha made it clear that its intervention is above politics and focused solely on justice, merit and the interests of Jammu and Kashmir’s youth.
The delegation also appealed to the protesting athletes to maintain peace and discipline and urged the authorities to remain sensitive to the health and well-being of those undertaking hunger strike.
The delegation comprised of GA Khwaja (DC Retd.), Arvinder Singh Amn (Addl. Gen. Secy.), Amanat Ali Shah (President Anjuman-e-Imamia), Tanishq (President, Youth Wing), Akhileshwar (Vice-President), Brig. V S Dheman, Ravi Singh Slathia, Rajey Jamwal and others.
