Permit Woes
Ghani craving for dear ones in PoK 
Shariq Majeed
Tribune News Service

Chela Dangri-Mandi (Poonch), June 17
Abdul Ghani (65), resident of this frontier district, is running out of patience to get a travel permit to go to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir to meet his close relatives.
He applied for the permit in May 2005 to travel to Muzzafarabad in PoK but he is yet to get the same.
Meanwhile, he has lost about 70 of his relatives, including his parents, who lived in PoK. He got separated from his parents during 1965 war and majority of his relatives live on the other side of the LoC in PoK.
Ghani last met his parents and other relatives in 1985 when he travelled to PoK. His father Ghulam Joo and mother Khabali Bi died in 1992 and 2002, respectively, and he regrets till date that he didn’t get their last glimpse before they died.
He also lost his paternal aunt Noor Jana Begum’s husband Muhammad Rasheed and niece Hazira Begum.
“Even as about 70 of my relatives died in PoK but I cannot attend their last rites. I am so unfortunate that I couldn’t attend the religious rites of my parents,” rues Ghani in tears.
“After the Indian government opened Uri-Muzaffaradad road I applied for the permit in May 2005 so that I could travel to PoK so that I could at least pray at the graves of my parents before I die,” he says.
“I have heard that my brothers Muhammad Hussain (85) and Mir Hussain (75) both diabetic and sister Noor Jana Begum (65) (heart patient) too remain terminally ill and may not survive for too long. I wish to meet them before I die,” he adds.
Ghani complains that though many of his known persons who had applied for travel permit after him had got the requisite permission, but he could not get the one.
“I fail to understand how influential persons who applied after me got the permit and in fact returned back after meeting their relatives across the LoC,” Ghani says.
“I hope that government will speed up the process so that we can meet our dear ones,” he adds. Though the district administration maintains silence over the issue, sources in the administration and the police don’t rule out the role of money and influence in the CID and the police to get the verification done within less time.