Delimitation report to be tabled in upcoming Parl session
Copies reach LS, RS Sectts; debate likely
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, July 16: The Parliament is likely to witness a debate on Delimitation Commission report on Jammu and Kashmir as its copy will be laid in both Houses during Monsoon session starting July 18 while the Union Cabinet will take call on nomination of Kashmiri Pandits and PoJK residents to the Legislative Assembly as suggested by the Panel before introducing legislation.
While business schedule of the Parliament is released on day-to-day basis, official sources told the Excelsior the Union Ministry of Home Affairs is likely to table report of the Delimitation Commission in both Houses of the Parliament.
“A debate may or may not take place on the report,” they said, adding the Union Home Ministry has already sent copies of the Commission report to Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha Secretariats for tabling in both the Houses.
The Opposition could insist on discussion on the report. There are three National Conference members in Lok Sabha including Dr Farooq Abdullah, Mohammad Akbar Lone and Hasnain Masoodi while BJP has two including Union Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Dr Jitendra Singh and Jugal Kishore Sharma.
However, there are no members from Jammu and Kashmir in the Rajya Sabha. All four Rajya Sabha members from J&K had retired in February 2021 and the vacancies couldn’t be filled in absence of Legislative Assembly in the Union Territory.
Meanwhile, as per the sources, the Union Cabinet will first take up the issue of nomination of two Kashmiri Pandits and PoJK refugees, whose numbers have not been specified by the Delimitation Commission, before the issue is debated in the Parliament in the form of bill.
“The Union Cabinet has to clear the proposal first before it goes to the Parliament for debate and approval,” sources said.
The Delimitation Commission recommended that two Kashmiri migrants including one woman can be nominated to the Legislative Assembly with voting rights. It also recommended nominations for PoJK displaced persons but didn’t mention the numbers.
However, according to sources, the Central Government is considering giving three to four nomination seats to the PoJK displaced persons on the ground that 24 constituencies have been reserved for PoJK people in the Assembly and nearly one-third population had migrated here in 1947.
“Though there has been demand for reservation of eight seats for PoJK refugees settled here, the seats under consideration are three to four,” sources said.
Jammu and Kashmir Assembly has total of 114 seats but election will be held for only 90 constituencies—47 in Kashmir division and 43 in Jammu region–as 24 seats are reserved for PoJK.
There is already provision for nomination of two women to the Legislative Assembly which was the case in the previous House also when Jammu and Kashmir was a State.
Strength of Jammu and Kashmir House could reach 98 taking into account nomination of two women and likely nomination of two Kashmiri Pandit migrants and four PoJK refugees, sources said.
The Delimitation Commission has recommended that Kashmiri migrants to be nominated to the Assembly should be given voting rights. This is in line with the Puducherry Assembly.
Sources said the power to nominate MLAs including woman and, if approved by the Parliament, the Kashmiri Pandit migrants and PoJK displaced persons, with the Central Government as is the case in Puducherry Assembly.
Puducherry is also a Union Territory with Assembly like Jammu and Kashmir. It has 30 elected MLAs and three nominated while Jammu and Kashmir will have 90 elected MLAs and a call on exact number of nominations from Kashmiri Pandit migrants and PoJK displaced persons will be taken by the Central Government. However, two women have to be nominated to the House.
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