J-K Delimitation Commission recommends additional seats in assembly for Kashmiri migrants, displaced persons from PoJK

New Delhi [India], May 5 (ANI): Delimitation Commission for Jammu and Kashmir in its final order on Thursday has recommended additional seats for Kashmiri migrants and displaced persons from Pakistan occupied Kashmir. 

The Delimitation Commission, headed by the retired Supreme Court Judge Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai met today to finalise the Delimitation Order for Jammu and Kashmir. The Gazette notification for the same has also been published and the order will come into effect from the date announced by the central government.

As per the final Delimitation Order, out of the 90 assembly constituencies, 43 will be part of the Jammu region and 47 of the Kashmir region.

Nine seats have been reserved for the Scheduled Tribes (STs) for the first time – six in the Jammu region and three in the Kashmir Valley.  Seven seats have been reserved for Scheduled Castes.   The constitution of erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir state did not provide for reservation of seats for the Scheduled Tribes in the legislative assembly.

All five parliamentary constituencies will have an equal number of assembly seats for the first time.  Jammu and Kashmir has been treated as a single entity for the purpose of delimitation.

“One of the parliamentary constituencies has been carved out combining the Anantnag region in the Valley and the Rajouri and Poonch of the Jammu region. By this reorganisation, each parliamentary constituency will have equal number of 18 assembly constituencies each,” an official release said.

Names of some assembly constituencies have also been changed keeping in view the demand of local representatives.

The release said patwar circle is the lowest administrative unit which has not been broken. All assembly constituencies will remain within the boundary of the concerned district.

The  Commission recommended at least two members (one of them must be female) from the community of Kashmiri migrants in the Legislative Assembly. It said such members may be given power at par with the power of nominated members of the legislative assembly of UT of Puducherry

The Commission said that the central government may consider giving displaced persons from Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir some representation in Jammu and Kashmir legislative assembly by way of nomination.

The Commission has Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra and Jammu and Kashmir State Election Commissioner KK Sharma as ex-officio members. (ANI)