J&K Speaker Blocks Motion To Review Reservation Policy Amid Growing Unhappiness Over Shrinking Open Merit Seats

The Jammu and Kashmir Assembly on Monday (27 October) rejected a private member’s resolution that called for a debate on rationalising the Union Territory’s reservation policy, the Hindustan Times reported.

The proposal, submitted by Awami Ittehad Party (AIP) MLA Sheikh Khursheed Ahmad, was turned down by Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather under Rule 179 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business.

Speaker Rather stated that the matter could not be taken up as it was “neither of recent occurrence nor permissible because it’s sub judice.” He further explained that the issue had already been deliberated upon earlier, and a government committee had been constituted to examine it.

Ahmad’s resolution aimed to review the reservation structure to promote fairness and equitable representation across all communities.

AIP’s chief spokesperson, Inam Un Nabi, remarked that prolonged inequality in the reservation system was costing thousands of meritorious students their opportunities.

People's Conference chairman Sajjad Lone, in a post on X, expressed concern that the reservation issue was being deliberately sidelined despite its long-term implications for the region’s future.

The current reservation framework, implemented in 2022, has been controversial for reducing open merit seats to 40 per cent, which critics claim violates the Supreme Court’s 50 per cent cap.

The policy sparked large-scale protests by general category students, who labelled it discriminatory.

Leaders across party lines, including National Conference MP Aga Ruhullah Mehdi and PDP MLA Waheed ur Rehman Para, have voiced opposition to the existing structure.

Para alleged that the reduction in the RBA quota amounted to “disempowerment of Kashmiris” and accused the National Conference of backing “an illegal, BJP-driven reservation policy.”

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