Drawing a Line: On Jammu and Kashmir Delimitation Exercise

The proposed remapping of assembly constituencies in Union Territories (UTs) by the Jammu and Kashmir Delimitation Commission has put the entire spectrum of regional parties in the Kashmir Valley up in arms. At the core of their protest is the fear of shifting political power to the Jammu region. The commission has suggested Six additional assembly constituencies in Jammu, from 37 to 43, and one in the Valley, from 46 to 47. The political map is not being considered solely considering the spread of the population. Excessive Constituencies being proposed, is also based on factors such as “inadequate communication” and “lack of public facilities due to their extreme remoteness or inhospitable conditions at the international border”. Such ideas may have been applied in earlier instances as well, but what makes the current situation unique is the transfer of political power from Muslim territory to Hindu territory, and the fact that it is part of the two union territories of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir. comes after the reorganization. and the controversial abolition of its special constitutional status in 2019. The commission was constituted on the basis of an Act of Parliament on March 6, 2020, under the provisions of Part V of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act, 2019. It was imperative to redo and paint the seven. Additional Assembly Constituency for the 83-member Legislative Assembly of the Union Territory.

The commission has also suggested to reserve seven seats for Scheduled Castes (Hindus) who mainly fall in the Samba-Kathua-Jammu-Udhampur belt and earmark nine seats for Scheduled Tribes for the first time, making Rajouri- Poonch is likely to benefit. The area with the highest concentration of STs, mainly non-Kashmiri speaking Muslims. The commission has not yet disclosed the names of the districts where these seats have been created, and the ST/SC reservation and methodology prescribed. If population is the only criterion, then the seat share for the Valley would be at 51 with a population of 68.8 lakh (2011 census) and 39 in the Jammu region with a population of 53.5 lakh. Allocation increases the electoral prospects. Jammu-based parties at the cost of Kashmir-based parties. Parties in the Valley have opposed the draft, terming it “unacceptable” and “divisive” and questioning its validity. There is a national moratorium on delimitation, and a constitutional challenge to the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act, 2019 is still pending before the Supreme Court. The situation in Ladakh, which was carved out as a Union Territory without a legislature in 2019, is also comparable. Political groups are demanding statehood and special constitutional guarantees on land, jobs, demography and culture. Persistent arbitrariness and coercive measures to revive the politics of Jammu and Kashmir may succeed momentarily, but may not be a permanent path. A democratic path will inevitably involve more dialogue and accommodative measures.