Srinagar, Sep 21: The administration of Jammu & Kashmir Union Territory has given another six-month extension to Justice (retd.) G D Sharma-led comissission, which was constituted in March 2020 to review reservation for different social group categories.
Authoritative sources told news agency Kashmir News Observer (KNO) that the J & K government has given another six-month extension to the panel. “The commission has been granted another extension after it made a request to the government,” a senior official disclosed.
The commission is currently examining the issue of Reserved Backward Area (RBA) reservation. As many as 1200 villages each in Kashmir and Jammu are entitled to reservation under the RBA category.
The commission has already submitted its recommendations for the inclusion of new tribes/classes in scheduled tribes, scheduled castes, and social castes (weak and unprivileged classes) lists.
Based on its recommendations, the Union Government introduced three bills in the Parliament in July this year for restructuring reservations in Jammu & Kashmir. These bills seek recognition of new groups as scheduled tribes and scheduled castes and rechristening of the “social castes” category in J&K as “other backward classes”.
While “The Constitution (Jammu and Kashmir) Scheduled Tribes Order (Amendment) Bill, 2023” pushes for inclusion of the Pahari community, Paddaris, Gadda Braman and Koli tribes in ST list, the Constitution (Jammu and Kashmir) Scheduled Castes Order (Amendment) Bill, 2023, seeks addition of the Valmiki community in the Scheduled Castes category.
The Jammu and Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Bill, 2023, seeks rechristening of the Social Caste category as OBC.
—(KNO)
