The Centre has decided to complete the delimitation exercise in Jammu and Kashmir within a year which is likely to tilt the balance of power towards Jammu region with more MLAs than Kashmir in the Union Territory’s legislature.
On Friday, the Centre had notified constitution of the delimitation commission headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice Ranjana Desai to redraw the assembly and parliamentary constituencies of J&K as per the J&K Reorganisation Act, 2019. After abrogation of Article 370 on August 5 last year, the erstwhile state was carved into two separate UTs of J&K and Ladakh, the former with a legislature.
According to the J&K Reorganisation Act, seven seats are to be added to the present 85 in J&K. PoK with 24 allotted seats will remain untouched in the delimitation exercise, top sources said. At present, Kashmir region has 46 seats and Jammu 37, besides two nominated members.
The delimitation commission, which will simultaneously undertake a similar exercise in the four north-eastern states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Manipur, will distribute assembly constituencies as per the 2011 Census. According to sources, the Jammu region, which saw largescale migration from the militancy-hit Kashmir since the 1990s, will have more representatives in the new legislature.
According to the J&K Reorganisation Act, seven seats are to be added to the present 85 in J&K. PoK with 24 allotted seats will remain untouched in the delimitation exercise, top sources said. At present, Kashmir region has 46 seats and Jammu 37, besides two nominated members.
The delimitation commission, which will simultaneously undertake a similar exercise in the four north-eastern states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Manipur, will distribute assembly constituencies as per the 2011 Census. According to sources, the Jammu region, which saw largescale migration from the militancy-hit Kashmir since the 1990s, will have more representatives in the new legislature.
Hindu-dominated Jammu region saw an influx of both Muslim and Hindus fleeing the Valley after armed militancy broke out in 1989. However, if more seats are allotted to the Jammu region based on population, each constituency will have a mix of voters unlike Kashmir. The last delimitation exercise in J&K was carried out in 1995.
The 24 seats in PoK will not be considered in “reckoning the total membership of the assembly” and it will remain vacant and will be excluded in the delimiting exercise. The total assembly seats after delimitation will go up from 107 to 114.
The delimitation exercise will also lead to a number of reserved constituencies based on Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe settlements and will further tilt the balance in favour of Jammu region.
In redrawing the boundaries, the commission has been tasked to create geographically compact areas with talukas and districts to be bound together in earmarked constituencies. The Election Commission will publish its proposals for delimitation of constituencies along with dissenting proposals, if any, in the official gazette with a notice inviting objections and suggestions. A final decision will be taken only after giving consideration to all suggestions, a senior official said.(TOI)
