Why sideline established institutions
Jammu and Kashmir which is presently being governed by the centre is witnessing massive changes as far as the system of governance is concerned. The administrative setup in the newly established Union Territory is being reviewed to the core with new mechanisms being put in place.
The UT is also being provided with an assembly though with very little powers but as of now the elections for electing the new assembly too seem to be a farfetched dream. The centre as of now is planning delimitation of assembly seats in Jammu and Kashmir and for this preparations are in full swing.
However, what has come as a surprise is that the proposed Delimitation Commission to redraw assembly constituencies in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir will be set up by the central government, and not the Election Commission.
The centre has provisioned under the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act that the Delimitation Commission is to set up by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
It has either left been to the MHA or the Law Ministry who can decide among themselves who would issue the notification for the delimitation exercise.
According to section 60 of the Reorganisation Act, the number of seats in the Legislative Assembly of Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir shall be increased from 107 to 114. Out of these 24 seats are in Pakistan-administered Kashmir. So effectively, the seats will go up from 83 to 90 in the new assembly.
Notably, delimitation is the process of fixing limits or boundaries of territorial constituencies in a country or a province with a legislative body. In the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir the demands for issuing a notification for delimitation of assembly seats was being raised by various political organizations especially in Jammu region.
However, the state government headed by Omar Abdullah has put a ban on delimitation exercise till 2020.
Now that the centre not only degraded the status of the state to a UT but the reorganization act 2019 has also promised delimitation of assembly seats. But the process should have been conducted by the established poll panel like the Election Commission of India as is the norm.
Getting the exercise carried out by the MHA has given the people enough of reasons to doubt the intentions behind carrying out such an exercise. After all India is a democratic country and subverting democracy for political gains does not augur well for the future of the country.
KV Network
