Pak Visthapit Sangh
In 1999, Mr. Hindu Singh Sodha founded the community-based organization Pak Visthapit Sangh, “Displaced Pakistanis’ Organization,” (PVS) to address the previously unrecognized needs of Hindu-Pakistani refugees living in Rajasthan, India.
Prior to Mr. Sodha’s efforts, Pakistani immigrants lacked a united front from which they could air their grievances and coordinate action. PVS created coordination between settlements scattered across the states, helping refugees promote a sense of identity and a common goal of securing their basic human rights.
PVS’ original objectives as an organization were to demand the Government of India 1) reformulate its rehabilitation package for refugees who migrated to Rajasthan between 1965 and 1971, 2) grant Indian citizenship to post-1971 refugees (and provide them with proper rehabilitation packages), and 3) delegate the power to grant citizenship to the District Magistrates in the districts of Rajasthan and Gujarat.
In order to achieve these goals, PVS organized numerous public hearings and demonstrations, held meetings with government officials and bureaucrats, and met with leaders of various political parties to encourage political consensus on this issue. Over 400 volunteers and local leaders from within the refugee communities worked with PVS to take part in bettering their own lives and securing justice for their futures.
Previously in 1978, the Government of India had announced the implementation of a rehabilitation package intended to provide relief to Pakistani refugees who had migrated to India in 1971. Through working with these refugees, PVS discovered and publicized many discrepancies in the package, drawing the attention of both policy makers and news media to this issue.
In 2005, due to PVS’ efforts, the Government of India agreed to delegate the power to grant citizenship to the District Magistrates in Rajasthan. This made the application process more accessible to thousands of refugees; 13,000 refugees were granted Indian citizenship.
Seemant Lok Sangathan
Shortly after the critical juncture of achieving citizenship for 13,000 refugees, PVS organized a strategic planning workshop, conducted in Jodhpur in April of 2005. Mr. Hindu Singh Sodha, volunteers from five districts in Rajasthan, and representatives from Haryana and Gujarat were present. All participants of the workshop agreed that PVS provided the unity and recognition that Pakistani refugees needed, but that there were also more issues to be addressed in addition to citizenship and rehabilitation.
Therefore in 2005, Mr. Sodha replaced and expanded PVS by creating the community-based organization Seemant Lok Sangathan, “Border Area Peoples’ Union,” (SLS). SLS was formed to build upon the efforts of PVS, with the following objectives in mind:
Even if refugees are granted citizenship, they still face hardships related to social assimilation and livelihood that SLS can address.
Following the Partition of 1947, migrants were not the only ones plagued with difficulties. The local people living along the India-Pakistan border, both Hindus and Muslims, are threatened by insecurity and violence. SLS can serve as a means of creating harmony between border communities.
Since the issues related to forced migration and displaced refugees have policy level ramifications, national and international level intervention is required. It is in this context that SLS needs to become the centre of collaboration with similar organizations within India and South Asia, in order to provide a platform for policy advocacy and public education at the national and international levels.
Since it’s founding, SLS has created dialogue between border communities that were once a part of Undivided India and that have also recently experienced an influx of refugee settlers. In 2006 and 2010, SLS conducted national seminars to gather representative of all migrant groups from South Asia living in India. The representatives discussed problems faced in their respective areas, collaborating with other communities to create a forum designed to discuss both grievances and solutions.
SLS has expanded from only Rajasthan to work with refugees living in settlements around the India-Pakistan border and throughout Rajasthan, Gujarat, Haryana, Delhi, and Madhya Pradesh.
Universal Just Action Society
In 2008, Seemant Lok Sangathan was registered as a non-governmental organization under the name Universal Just Action Society (UJAS). SLS and UJAS are synonymous. UJAS serves as an NGO with international recognition, while refugee communities most commonly refer to the organization as Seemant Lok Sangathan.
UJAS/SLS continues to promote and accomplish the original objectives of SLS and PVS at their founding. At the heart of the organization lie the direct efforts of Mr. Hindu Singh Sodha, who has dedicated his life to this issue and to aiding Pakistani refugees in whatever way he can.