Early Times Report
Jammu, Mar 11: Refusal of the Licensing Authority to renew legitimate arm licenses on flimsy grounds has put the holders in a piquant situation with authorities making them to shuttle between DC office to Department of Home.
Sources informed Early Times that before online renewal of arms license by the government, the license holders used to get it renewed from the concerned office of Dy.Commissioner who is now asking them to approach the concerned Issuing Authority for renewal. While talking to Early Times correspondent, one Rameshwer Singh Manhas R/O Miran Sahib informed that when he approached D.C. office Jammu in the month of Nov. 2015 for renewal of his arms license as which was issued by the Home Department in 1999, he was asked to approach the original Issuing Authority i.e. Home Department to get the needful done there. He further said that when he approached Home Department in December 2015, he was informed that the relevant record has been taken by CBI and he should check in the month of March 2016.
Narrating his woes, he said that when he again went to concerned officer in Home Department this month, he narrated the same story of non-availability of record, directing him to go to D.C. office for renewal of license. He further rued saying that if the relevant record is not available in the Department, what is the fault of license holder even as the Issuing Authority does not seem to be ready to honour its own issued original document further added, saying that lack of administrative acumen to sort out the issue for ensuring speedy service delivery system, is causing harassment and wastage of time of people. He said that there may have been other several identical cases bearing the brunt of authorities' evincing recklessness to address the genuine grievances related to public issues.
Expressing dismay over passive tendency of the concerned department, the source said that in the wake of non-availability of relevant record about arms licenses originally issued by the Home Department which are stated to be renewed by concerned Dy.Commissioner, necessary instructions ought to have been passed on to district administration as per past practice in order to avoid unnecessary embarrassment to the license holders, but nothing has been done to mitigate their difficulties, he lamented. When contacted Addl. Secretary Home Department, he also declined to elaborate plainly saying to approach the D.C. office concerned for the purpose. |
