Ahead of Assembly Students’ Body Urges CM to Review Reservation Policy
KNT: The Jammu and Kashmir Students Association has written to Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, seeking a comprehensive review of the current reservation policy in the Union Territory. This move comes ahead of the assembly session, with the Association emphasizing that the review is crucial to ensure fairness and justice for all students.
The current reservation policy has been a topic of debate, with many feeling that it disproportionately benefits certain categories, significantly limiting opportunities for students competing on open merit. In fact, the implementation of the new reservation policy has resulted in 69% of youth competing for only 36% of available college seats and job positions in Jammu and Kashmir.
The Association referenced the National Conference’s election manifesto, which promised to revisit the reservation policy to better reflect the region’s demographic realities. They emphasized that the review is essential to uphold the foundational purpose of reservations in India: to redress historical injustices while preserving a meritocratic system.
Key concerns raised by the Association include the need for proportional representation based on population, merit-based opportunities, and a transparent and inclusive approach to the review process. They also called for a temporary hold on new recruitments until the reservation policy is comprehensively overhauled.
The Jammu and Kashmir Reservation Act, 2004, was applicable before the revocation of Article 370 and Article 35A of the Constitution of India, 1949. After Article 370 was repealed, the Act was made applicable with certain amendments to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and Union Territory of Ladakh. [KNT]
