J&K’s two bills seek to nominate two Kashmiri migrant community members: Shah

New Delhi: Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday said that the two bills on Jammu and Kashmir seek to nominate two Kashmiri Migrant community members, including a woman, to the assembly.

He made the announcement while speaking in the Lok Sabha during a debate on the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill, 2023 and the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation Amendment) Bill, 2023.

He said that one seat in the Jammu and Kashmir assembly will be set aside for people displaced from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

He also said that more than 45,000 people have lost their lives due to terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir so far.

The Home Minister said that the government's focus was on ending the terror ecosystem in Jammu and Kashmir.

He said a plan to have "zero terror incidents" in Jammu and Kashmir is in force for three years and it will be successful by 2026.

"I believe Modi government will return to power in 2024 and by 2026, I hope there will be no terror incident in Jammu and Kashmir," Shah said.

He also said that 24 seats in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly had been reserved for Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (POK) as they belong to India.

"Jammu had 37 seats but now it has 43. Meanwhile, Kashmir, which had 46 seats, now has 47," he said.

He said that since we believe PoK is ours we have reserved 24 seats for PoK.

He said that now earlier there were 107 seats, now J&K will have 114 seats in J&K assembly. Earlier there were two nominated member and now there will be five nominated members.

"When they (Kashmiri Pandits) were displaced, they were forced to live as refugees in their country. Around 46,631 families were displaced in their own country. This Bill is to get them rights. This Bill is to give them representation," he said.

Shah said that the bills aimed at delivering justice to people who had been deprived for the past 70 years. Notably, one of two bills on Jammu and Kashmir seeks to nominate two Kashmiri migrant community members, including a woman, to the assembly.

He also said that this has been possible because on August 5 and 6 historic bills to revoke Article 370 and the delimitation was part of it.

He said that after the revocation of Article 370 revoked, many people questioned that the terrorism has not ended.

Shah said the two bills will give "justice" to those deprived of their rights for the last 70 years and asserted that reservation to the displaced people will give them a voice in the legislature.

He said that had terrorism been tackled at the beginning without considering vote-bank politics, Kashmiri Pandits would not have had to leave Kashmir Valley.

He said one of the bills seeks to give "representation in the assembly to those who had to leave Kashmir due to terrorism".

Shah also slammed the Congress for talking about backward classes, saying that if any party has harmed backward classes and come in the way of their growth, it is the Congress.

He said Narendra Modi was born into a poor family and became the prime minister and he knows the pain of the backward classes and the poor.

The Jammu and Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Bill and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill were passed by the Lok Sabha on Wednesday.