J&K Act To Reserve 2 Assembly Seats For Kashmiri Migrant Communities Comes Into Force

The Jammu and Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Act, 2023 is to provide reservation in jobs and admission to professional institutions for members of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and other socially and educationally backward classes.

The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Act, 2023, and the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Act, 2023, have come into effect in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, as announced by two official notifications from the Ministry of Home Affairs on Tuesday, news agency PTI reported. The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Act, 2023, now allows for the nomination of two members from the Kashmiri migrant community, including one woman, and one member from displaced persons from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) to the legislative assembly of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

This amendment is aimed at ensuring the representation of Kashmiri migrants, displaced persons from PoK, and Scheduled Tribes in the legislative assembly, preserving their political rights and promoting their overall social and economic development.

One of the official notifications issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs stated, "In exercise of the powers conferred subsection (2) of section 1 of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Act 2023 (34 of 2023), the central government hereby appoints the 26th day of December 2023 as the date on which the provisions of the said Act shall come into force."

Jammu and Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Act, 2023

Simultaneously, the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Act, 2023, has also been enforced. This legislation seeks to amend the term 'weak and under-privileged classes (social castes)' in the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation Act, 2004, to 'Other Backward Classes (OBC),' thereby expanding reservation benefits to a wider range of communities. The amendment was recommended by the Jammu and Kashmir Socially Educationally Backward Classes Commission (SEBCC).

The second official notification stated, "In exercise of the powers conferred subsection (2) of section 1 of the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Act 2023 (35 of 2023), the central government hereby appoints the 26th day of December 2023 as the date on which the provisions of the said Act shall come into force."

The Jammu and Kashmir Reservation Act, 2004, remains in force as per the provisions of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, until the establishment of the Legislature in the Union Territory. The powers of the Legislature of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir are currently exercised by or under the authority of Parliament, as per the proclamation of the President dated October 31, 2019.

The Rajya Sabha on December 11 passed two bills granting reservation to the Kashmiri Pandit migrants and displaced people from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) in the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly.