J&K Assembly To Have Reserved Seats For Kashmiri Migrants And Displaced Persons From PoJK As Centre Set To Amend Law

The government is reportedly planning to amend the J&K Reorganisation Act 2019 in order to allocate two seats in the J&K Legislative Assembly for 'Kashmiri Migrants' and one seat for displaced persons from Pakistan occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

This amendment aims to protect their political rights and promote their overall social and economic development.

The nominated members will be chosen by the Lieutenant Governor. The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2023 will be presented in the Lok Sabha, The Indian Express reported citing sources.

Following the recent delimitation process, the number of seats in the Legislative Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir has increased from 107 to 114. Out of these, nine seats will be reserved for Scheduled Tribes.

The proposed Bill includes an amendment to Section 14 of the existing Act and the addition of two new sections, namely Sections 15 A and 15 B.

The amendment to Section 14 will replace '107 seats' with '114 seats' in the Act, while Sections 15 A and 15 B will outline the details of the three reserved seats.

According to the amended Bill, the seat designated for 'Kashmiri Migrants' in the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly can be filled by the Lieutenant Governor of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

The Lieutenant Governor will have the authority to nominate up to two members from the community of Kashmiri Migrants, with at least one of them being a woman.

Section 15 B of the Bill reportedly states that the Lieutenant Governor of the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir may nominate one member from displaced persons from Pakistan occupied Jammu and Kashmir to the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly.

The Bill's 'Statement of Objects and Reasons' section highlights the migration of numerous individuals from their ancestral homes in the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir state, particularly the Kashmiri Hindus and Pandits, during the era of terrorism in the late eighties. It also mentions that a few families from the Sikh and Muslim communities were also among those who migrated.

According to available data from the Government of Jammu and Kashmir, over the past three decades, 46,517 families comprising 158,976 individuals have registered with the state's Relief Organisation.

The Bill states that after the 1947 Pakistani aggression in Jammu and Kashmir, a total of 31,779 families migrated from the Pakistan occupied areas to the erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir.

Out of these families, 26,319 settled within Jammu and Kashmir, while 5,460 moved to other parts of the country.

Additionally, during the Indo-Pak wars of 1965 and 1971, a further 10,065 families were displaced from the Chhamb Niabat area. Among them, 3,500 families were displaced during the 1965 war and 6,565 families were displaced during the 1971 war.

In total, 41,844 families were displaced during the 1947-48, 1965, and 1971 Indo-Pak wars.