 Early Times Report
Jammu, Mar 15: The debate over reservation rules has reignited following a fresh statement by Peoples’ Conference chief and Handwara MLA Sajad Gani Lone, who criticized the prevailing quota system as being unfair to Kashmiri-speaking people.
Although discussions on the matter had seemingly settled after the formation of a three-member Cabinet Sub-Committee (CSC) led by Education, Health, Medical Education, and Social Welfare Minister Sakina Itoo, Lone’s remarks have brought the issue back into the spotlight.
The Omar Abdullah-led government clarified that no specific timeline has been set for the CSC, which was constituted to review the reservation system.
In response to this, Lone expressed concerns about regional disparities in quota allocations, citing government data tabled in the Legislative Assembly.
“This is a shocker,” Lone remarked, emphasizing that Kashmir lags far behind in quota allocations. “The loss of quotas to the Kashmiri-speaking population is much greater than we had anticipated.”
He further alleged that the reservation policy is systematically biased against both the Kashmiri-speaking population and Scheduled Tribes (STs) or Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) residing in Kashmir.
“Even within the ST category, Kashmir is at a disadvantage, making up only 15 percent of the total applicants from the ST pool,” Lone pointed out.
Referring to the Backward Area (RBA) category, Lone said that while the proportion of RBA-designated areas in Jammu and Kashmir is nearly the same, the Kashmir region continues to fall behind in actual numbers despite having a 7 percent higher population than Jammu.
Minister for Social Welfare Sakina Itoo provided figures on the issuance of reservation certificates since April 1, 2023: SC/ST Certificates: 5,26,605 issued in Jammu, compared to only 67,813 in Kashmir. ALC, IB, and RBA Categories: 2,198 villages in Jammu and 1,245 villages in Kashmir have benefited. EWS Certificates: 29,963 issued across J&K, with 27,420 in Jammu and only 2,273 in Kashmir.
The J&K Government formally constituted the CSC on December 10, 2024, as a follow-up to a November 22 Cabinet decision calling for a comprehensive review of reservation policies in government jobs.
According to an official order issued by Sanjeev Verma, Commissioner/Secretary of the General Administration Department (GAD), J&K, the CSC comprised Sakeena Masood, Javed Ahmad Rana, and Satish Sharma. The committee has been tasked with reviewing grievances regarding reservation policies in consultation with stakeholders. |
