Decision on recommendations pending for over one year
Over 3 pc increase in electorates
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, May 9: Significantly, the electoral revision for the Jammu and Kashmir Panchayats has recorded a net ncrease of 3 percent even as final electoral rolls will be published on May 20.
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However, since the Panchayat elections can’t be held in the UT till OBC Commission report granting reservation to the OBCs in the Local Bodies is accepted by the Government, the State Election Commissioner (SEC) has written to the Government in this regard.
SEC Shantmanu told the Excelsior that there has been an ncrease of 4 percent in voter additions during nearly two-month long exercise conducted by the Commission.
Also, he said, there was around one percent deletion of names of the electorates.
Taking deletions into account, the net increase in the Panchayat voter lists has come around at over 3 percent, which is above the annual average of two percent, Shantmanu said.
He added that the final electoral rolls will be published on May 20 as presently the reading work and finalization of lists are on.
Meanwhile, the SEC has written to the UT Government on OBC Commission report which was submitted by the Commission chairman Justice (Retd) Janak Raj Kotwal in February 2025.
The Commission was set up by the Lieutenant Governor’s administration for determining percentage of reservation for OBCs in the Local Bodies.
”Till a decision is taken on the OBC reservation, elections to the Local Bodies can’t be held,” the sources said, adding it was in this context that the SEC has written to the Government for a decision on the Commission report.
Presently, SC/STs and women have reservation in the Local Bodies.
The Panchayats ceased to exist in Jammu and Kashmir on January 9, 2024 and the UT is without the elected Panchayats for past over two years now.
Similar is the case with the Municipalities which completed their term in October-November 2023. Term of the Block Development Councils (BDCs) was co-terminus with the Panchayats and their tenure also ended on January 9, 2024.
Tenure of the District Development Councils (DDCs) ended on February 24, 2026.
Now, the Jammu and Kashmir is without the elected Local Bodies with all three tiers of the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) non-existent.
This was for the first time that the Jammu and Kashmir had all three elected Institutions of the PRIs.
There has been no word from the Government so far on implementation of OBC Commission report or conduct of Panchayat and Municipal elections in Jammu and Kashmir.
During budget session of the Legislature, the Government, in response to several questions, didn’t give any timeline for the Local Body elections.
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