Jammu, Feb. 20 -- Taking a firm stand against encroachment on government land, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday assured action in the matter and said it will begin with influential violators before targeting the poor.

Winding up the discussions on grants of his departments in the J&K Legislative Assembly, Abdullah said there was no disagreement over the need to remove encroachments, but stressed that the process must be fair and follow due advice given to departments.

"None of us is saying that action should not be taken against encroachers. One of the members, Sham Lal Sharma (BJP MLA), said while the bulldozers are used against the poor, the rich manage to escape; it reflects a long-standing practice that needs to be reversed....