Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Dec 13: After more than two decades, the State Government is heading towards constitution of Delimitation Commission in Jammu and Kashmir for which a high level official committee was working out modalities on composition of the Panel and whether it would be authorized to increase number of Assembly seats (for which a Constitutional amendment is required) or it would rotate reserved Assembly seats and adjust areas of other constituencies to strike balance of electorates.
Official sources told the Excelsior that the Cabinet Sub Committee on implementation of Agenda of Alliance of PDP-BJP Government had referred the issue of working out modalities for setting up of Delimitation Commission to a high-level bureaucratic panel, which has worked on various theories on composition and mandate (of the Commission).
A final decision was now expected to be taken very shortly.
Though increase in total number of Assembly constituencies has been barred in the State like other parts of the country since 2002 when J&K Legislature adopted a Constitutional amendment (approved by the Parliament) to freeze number of Lok Sabha and Assembly seats till 2026, Jammu and Kashmir has the powers to revoke the law through another Constitutional amendment with 2/3rd majority and go for increase in total seats.
However, the State can also set up the Delimitation Commission to re-adjust boundaries of Assembly constituencies and rotation of seven seats reserved for Scheduled Castes in total 87 Assembly seats in the State. Though a reserved seat had to be rotated after every two elections, in J&K, the reserved seats have not been rotated during the past four Assembly elections.
Noting that setting up of the Delimitation Commission is on agenda of the PDP-BJP coalition Government, sources said that composition of the Commission is being worked out but most likely it would comprise non-political persons like top retired bureaucrats representing all three regions of the States including Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh.
“The PDP-BJP coalition Government with the support of Independents has two-third majority in both Houses of the Legislature and they can easily pass a Constitutional amendment bill to set up Delimitation Commission,” sources pointed out but said the Government would evolve a consensus on mandate and composition of the Commission before going to the Legislature.
It was in early nineties when last Delimitation Commission was set up in Jammu and Kashmir. It had increased number of Assembly seats of the State from 76 to 87 (Jammu from 32 to 37, Kashmir from 42 to 46 and Ladakh from 2 to 4). J&K has total 87 elected MLAs but the number goes up to 89 as the State has provision of two nominated women MLAs, who can vote in the Constitution amendment bill.
There are seven seats reserved for Scheduled Castes in the Assembly, all falling in Jammu region, which haven’t been rotated since 1996. They included Chhamb, Domana and RS Pura in Jammu district, Samba, Hiranagar in Kathua district, Chenani in Udhampur district and Ramban. There are no Assembly seats reserved for Scheduled Tribes in Jammu and Kashmir.
Four Assembly elections (1996, 2002, 2008 and 2014) have been conducted without rotation of seven reserved seats though the reserved seats had to be rotated after every two Assembly elections. This has affected the political career of general category candidates on reserved seats and vice versa.
Sources said if the Delimitation Commission was not mandated to increase number of Assembly seats, it would be authorized to rotate reserved seats and re-adjust boundaries of Assembly seats to strike balance of electorates.
Several seats in the State have very high number of electorates like Jammu West and Gandhi Nagar in Jammu region have about 1.5 lakh voters while adjoining Jammu East has about 60,000 votes. Such type of mistakes and adjustment of boundaries can be done by the Delimitation Commission even without increasing total number of Assembly seats, sources said.
During his tenure as Chief Minister, Ghulam Nabi Azad had mooted proposal of 25 per cent increase in number of Assembly seats of all three regions of the State, which would have resulted into increase of 22 Assembly constituencies in the State. However, as the then Congress-PDP coalition Government didn’t have two-third majority to get the proposal through in the Assembly, major Opposition National Conference had opposed the move to increase such a large number of seats. The proposal was shelved.
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