7 months ago
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A connection to rationalise the existent preservation quota, which squeezes the ‘Open Merit’ class to astir 30%, has been sent to Lieutenant-Governor Manoj Sinha for approval, J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said connected Thursday (December 4, 2025).
“The record was signed yesterday (Wednesday) and sent to the Lieutenant-Governor for vetting. We anticipation helium volition o.k. it and the bid volition beryllium issued thereafter,” Mr. Abdullah said. However, Mr. Abdullah did not divulge the details of the proposal.
The Omar Abdullah authorities successful 2024 had acceptable up a three-member sub-committee to survey the existent preservation quota and suggest measures to summation the Open Merit category’s quota to 50%.
In March 2024, the L-G had approved 10% preservation for recently included tribes, including Paharis, arsenic Scheduled Tribes (ST), and added 15 caller castes arsenic Other Backward Classes (OBCs). The L-G’s determination reduced the Open Merit quota to astir 30%. It sparked a large thoroughfare run from students and aspirants belonging to the Open Merit category.
The existent argumentation has preservation of 20% for Scheduled Tribes (STs); 8% for Scheduled Castes (SC); 10% for Reserved Backward Areas (RBA); 8% for Other Backward Classes; 4% for Local Area Candidates/Integrated Borders; 10% for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS); and 10% for children of defence personnel, sports, persons with disabilities, etc. Earlier, J&K lone had 10% preservation for STs.
Several J&K parties expressed fears that the Omar Abdullah authorities was reducing the RBA and EWS quotas to summation the Open Merit quota. The groups that autumn nether the RBA class person already opposed immoderate determination to chopped their quota.
“The stock of RBA successful the preservation argumentation was drastically reduced from 20% to 10% successful 2020, adjacent arsenic the assemblage constitutes astir 25% of the full population. Any simplification strategy violates the principles of equity, fairness, and societal justice,” aspirants of the RBA radical said successful a associated missive to the Chief Minister.
The J&K Students Association (JKSA) had submitted a argumentation study to the CM’s Secretariat, advising “not to trim EWS oregon RBA quotas”, a JKSA spokesperson said. “Instead, we recommended reforming and updating income, onshore and economic-progress criteria to marque the preservation model much fair, data-driven and equitable for all,” the JKSA said.
Imran Reza Ansari, wide caput of the J&K Peoples Conference, said the National Conference-led government’s changes to RBA and EWS preservation volition beryllium “a calculated battle connected susceptible Kashmiri-speaking communities masquerading arsenic reform”.
“It volition not beryllium betterment but linguistic gymnastics staging a heist. I telephone it ‘Rob Peter to wage Paul’, and past springiness Paul a podium to lecture Peter connected equality portion some get fleeced by this spineless and visionless government,” Mr. Ansari said.
The BJP has besides warned against tinkering with the EWS and RBA quotas. “The National Conference has struck straight astatine the rights of the poorest sections of nine — the EWS class of the economically weakest conception and the RBA class of villages with nary facilities, nary schools, nary roads, nary basal infrastructure. These 2 classes person been targeted and reduced,” BJP spokesperson Altaf Thakur said.
