Lucknow: Defence Minister and Member of Parliament from Lucknow, Rajnath Singh, visited the residence of former Mayor of Lucknow, Sanyukta Bhatia, in Singar Nagar on Sunday to extend his heartfelt condolences on the demise of her mother, Late Anusuya Girotra. Expressing deep sorrow, the Defence Minister met the bereaved family and offered his sympathies, providing comfort during their time of grief.
Joining him in this expression of solidarity were Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak, Metropolitan BJP President Anand Dwivedi, MLCs Mukesh Sharma and Ram Chandra Pradhan, all of whom paid floral tributes to the departed soul and extended support to the Bhatia family.
Present at the condolence meeting were Prashant Bhatia (son of Sanyukta Bhatia), his wife Reshu Bhatia, grandson Daksh, and other close family members.
On this solemn occasion, Sanyukta Bhatia submitted a letter to the Defence Minister, appealing for justice and rightful representation for families displaced during the Partition of India. Referring to the trauma endured by countless Hindu families, including her own, who were forced to flee from Pakistani territories of Punjab and Sindh during the violence and chaos of Partition, Bhatia urged the government to ensure equitable representation for these families within the current structure of the Waqf Board and to address issues surrounding enemy properties.
In her letter, Bhatia narrated how her family was among those who lost everything during the Partition and were forced to abandon their ancestral properties and homes. Her mother, Late Anusuya Girotra, endured the pain of separation, displacement, and rebuilding life in a new land. A freedom fighter from Jhang district (now in Punjab, Pakistan), Girotra lived a meaningful life of 99 years, having witnessed India’s struggle for independence and the tragic aftermath of Partition.
Bhatia recalled spending two years in a refugee camp during her childhood before finally reuniting with her father. “There are lakhs of families like mine,” she wrote, “who bore the brunt of Partition but never received their due recognition or restitution.”
She pointed out that while properties left behind by those who migrated to Pakistan were classified and preserved as “enemy properties” by the Indian government, no reciprocal action was taken by the Pakistani state. Instead, massive Indian landholdings were appropriated in the name of Waqf.
Bhatia welcomed the recent reforms brought about in the Waqf laws under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership, attributing them to the visionary and decisive leadership of leaders like Rajnath Singh. She reiterated her demand that displaced Hindu families be given rightful representation and justice, not just in terms of enemy properties but also within the Waqf Board’s institutional structure.
In her words, “India is a nation governed by a Constitution that honours justice and moral values. For too long, the Hindus displaced from across the border were labelled as mere refugees and treated unfairly. Today, under the current leadership, their pain has finally found a voice.”
Her letter concluded with a strong appeal to address the longstanding grievances of families torn apart by the Partition, saying that this is not only a matter of history, but a question of justice, dignity, and national honour.
