The anti-encroachment drive of Jammu and Kashmir has been creating headlines lately. After the Roshni Act was struck down, the government has initiated the drive to retrieve hundreds of thousands of kanals of land which has been under the illegal occupation of not just the influential people like politicians and businessmen but also ordinary people who have built their homes and have small orchards that sustain their families. Whether we like it or not, the issue of land ownership has always been controversial in Jammu and Kashmir, especially in the light of the recent changes prompted by the abrogation of Article 370 following which several local land laws were amended or completely written off from the books. It is no secret that many people across the union territory have encroached on various types of land such as kahcharai when the fact is that it belongs to the government and only the government is empowered to do whatever it wants with it. The question was not asked in the past because people were taking the system for granted. Take the example of a south Kashmir legislator who is believed to have rented out a tract of land that belongs to the government to the armed forces and he has also been collecting rent from them over the years. Just how he could achieve the feat is not known but there are allegations that he has fudged revenue papers. This is not a unique case. Given the rot that prevails in Jammu and Kashmir, there will be similar or even worse scandals that have been kept under wraps by the powers of yesteryears. But nothing is permanent in life. The situation has changed. The tables have turned on those who were drunk on power in the past. Now they have to face the music. Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha has already made it clear that only the influential and those who have abused power to grab land will be targeted under the anti-encroachment drive. Attempts will be made by vested interests to project as if the administration is hell bent on taking away the land from poor Kashmiris. Insinuations will be made by the opposition parties that the so-called demographic change was underway in Jammu and Kashmir. But this should not come in the way of the administration's plans to free the land from its illegal occupants. Land belongs to people. It should be returned to them.