In what can be described as an unprecedented move, District Administration Jammu has cancelled the reservation status for women of open category for Nagrota District Development Council constituency within a day of publicly notifying it.
The miffed locals are questioning the intent of administration and local political leaders, and the legality of ‘revising’ the reservation status from ‘Women (Open)’ to ‘Open’ within a day.
Abha Jamwal, Sarpanch, Jagti, doubted if the government’s agenda of women empowerment is for real.
She says, “In a first, the District Administration Jammu, through a lottery based process, notified reservation for Women (Open) in Nagrota constituency. The very next day, the reservation was cancelled. It is shocking not only to women of the area, but men too!”
“While Prime Minister Narendra Modi is laying special emphasis on women empowerment and is making laws to push women’s presence in shaping the political narrative of the country, look what the local government is doing,” she adds.
Pertinent to mention here that J&K administration on 26th October 2020 had notified 280 territorial constituencies of District Development Councils (DDCs) across the UT, and each district was said to have fourteen territorial constituencies, as the administration kick starts delimitation exercise under the amended Jammu and Kashmir Panchayati Raj Act.
Also, the Act envisages reservation of seats of DDCs to be filled by direct elections for Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST) and Women.
Against this backdrop, Sushma Chauhan IAS, Deputy Commissioner Jammu, issued a notification regarding the draft reservation of District Development Council Constituencies and invited objections/suggestions to the same, by 31st October 2020. Here, Nagrota DDC constituency was reserved for Women (Open).
Other thirteen constituencies were notified as Akhnoor (Women (Open)), Arnia (Women (SC)), Bhalwal (Open), Bhalwal Brahmana (Open), Bishnah (SC), Dansal (ST), Khour (Women (Open)), Maira Mandrian (Open), Mandal Phallian (Open), Marh (SC), Miran Sahib (Women (SC)), RS Pura (SC), and Suchetgarh (Open).
However, a revised notification was issued within twenty four hours, and the reservation status for Nagrota was strikingly cancelled and made ‘Open’. The ‘partially modified’ notification also included changed reservation statuses of Dansal (Women (ST)), Khour (Open), and Mandal Phallian (Women (Open), while inviting objections/suggestions by 31st October 2020.
“What are the possible reasons behind this abrupt move? Is the government under some sort of pressure? Has it been done to satisfy some vested interests?” Abha questioned.
Rajan Gandhi, Columnist, noted, “As in the past, every rule and regulation continues to fail in the UT of Jammu and Kashmir. The trend and precedence remains same, order after order. Whether it is SOP of MHA regarding inter-state movement, or Domicile law, or job reservation for locals, or vacancies and new courses in Education Department, or the most recent, reservation in DDC constituencies in Jammu district, the administration has just proved itself to be a U-Turn administration.”
“On one hand, Farooq-Omar duo is leaving no opportunity to cause embarrassment to PM Modi, and on the other hand, local administration is revising list to give undue benefit to NC, that too in Jammu Division. Who is the mole in the administration repeatedly sabotaging PM Modi’s and HM Shah’s efforts to strengthen nationalist forces in J&K?” he asked adding that this needs immediate corrective action by fixing accountability and suitable punitive action for repeated lapses.
“Will BJP act? It remains an million dollar unanswered question,” he says.
Also: Read my article at The News Now
DDC Segment in Nagrota, Jammu reserved for women, de-reserved
Published in The News Now on 30th October, 2020
waliaharry 