In J&K, fears that 5 MLAs nominated to assembly by LG could shake up poll dynamics

In an amendment to the Act in July 2023, an addition was made to allow for the nomination of three more members to the Assembly. Two members from the Kashmiri migrant community, one of whom is to be a woman, and one member from the “displaced persons from Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir”. While the Act mentions that these nominations are at the discretion of the L-G of J&K, there is legal silence on the matter of their voting rights and whether the members will have participation in government formation.

However, the J&K UT Assembly is modelled on the Puducherry Assembly where three nominated members function on par with elected MLAs and also have voting rights.

Post delimitation of seats in J&K, the number of elected MLAs to the Assembly is 90 with the halfway mark being set at 45. With the five nominated members, and if they are allowed voting rights, this moves to 48.

While political parties have internally raised concerns regarding the timing of these nominations, there is a lack of clarity on the powers the nominated members will be given.

A senior PDP functionary told The Indian Express that they are waiting to see if these members are given voting rights “because ideally, this should happen after government formation”. The National Conference is expected to issue a statement in this regard on Saturday. However, in a statement on Friday, the party dismissed “rumours” of “back channel” talks with any party outside the INDIA bloc as “figments of imagination”.

NC spokesperson Imran Nabi Dar said these claims are baseless, stressing that JKNC remains firmly aligned with the INDIA bloc and “is not engaging in any outside negotiations”.

Congress spokesperson in Jammu Ravinder Sharma said, “We oppose the nomination of five MLAs by the Lieutenant-Governor before the government formation in Jammu and Kashmir. Any such move is an assault on democracy, the people’s mandate, and the fundamental principles of the Constitution.” Flanked by working president Raman Bhalla, he expressed disapproval and vowed to fight it tooth and nail.

PTI inputs