The controversy behind Jammu Kashmir’s Reservation Bill 2019

In a move deemed as a very significant one in the face of Indian democratic governance, the Rajya Sabha approved the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation Bill 2019 after the amendments were approved by the Lok Sabha two days earlier. Here are the highlights of what we must know about the Jammu Kashmir Reservation Bill 2019.

What has changed now

The present bill replaces the Jammu and Kashmir Amendment Ordinance 2019 which was issued earlier on March 1, 2019. This bill gives room for some amendments in the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation Act passed in 2004 that aims to get the people residing in the areas near the international border within the purview of reservation on par with the people residing in the areas adjacent to the Actual Line of Control (ALoC).

Who the bill will benefit

As per the earlier bill, 3% reservation was allowed for the youth residing within 6 kms of the line of control in Jammu and Kashmir. As per the new amendments, this provision will be extended to the people living near the international border too. This measure will come to benefit the people living in Jammu, Samba and Kathua regions. Notably, the people inhabiting these regions have been pressing the government for so long to give this concession as they are confronting the impacts of cross-border firing in the Jammu and Kashmir region. At the same time, the compulsory 7 year service provision will also be applicable for the people living near the international border.

How is the change effected

By virtue of the Presidential order, the cabinet implemented the 77th constitutional amendment of 1995 to Jammu and Kashmir in order to give the benefits of reservation in promotion in the government services to the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. In addition, the cabinet applied the 103 constitutional amendment of 2019 to Jammu and Kashmir that sanctioned 10% reservation to the economically backward segments of people in the general category.

The setting in J&K

When the BJP withdrew its support to the PDP in November 2018, the Governor Satya Pal Malik dissolved the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly. With this move, the state came under the president’s rule. Due to security reasons, elections were not conducted so far here. Amidst this background, the parliament passed this bill and the parliament’s upper house gave its consent to extend the president’s rule in Jammu and Kashmir for the next six months.

What is the controversy now

While passing the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation Bill 2019, the central government claims that the given constitutional amendment was recommended by the State Administrative Council (SAC) under the leadership of Satya Pal Malik, the present governor for Jammu and Kashmir. None has questioned the decision of the government with regard to the latest amendment to favor the SCs, STs and EWS. However, there is an opposition to the way it has been accomplished. These sources quote from Article 370 that states that the provisions found in the Act of Parliament for Jammu and Kashmir can be done only with the concurrence of the state government. The question is whether the recent amendment can be approved during the time when the state is under the President’s rule.