Srinagar: Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti on Tuesday urged Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to address the reservation issue rather than leaving it to the courts, which she described as “very unfortunate.”
Mufti highlighted that the youth of Jammu and Kashmir had voted overwhelmingly for the National Conference (NC) in the assembly elections, hoping for a fair resolution to the reservation matter without infringing on anyone’s rights.
“We are not seeking to politicize this issue, but open merit students are being sidelined. The chief minister has requested six months to address it. However, with three NC MPs, including one from Ladakh, and 50 MLAs, why is such a delay needed? It appears they are waiting for a court decision to avoid taking action themselves,” Mufti remarked during an interaction with reporters.
The former chief minister pointed out that the NC government could have implemented a regulation to resolve the issue, similar to her 2018 decision to introduce SRO-49, which allocated 75% reservation to the open merit category in post-graduate admissions.
“What benefit will open merit students receive in this six-month period, especially in recruitment processes for lecturers, police, and other roles?” she questioned.
Mufti urged Abdullah to utilize his authority and resources to ensure economically weaker sections retain their reservation while open merit students are given their due share based on population proportion, without depending on court rulings.
She criticized the growing disregard for merit, stating, “When we send children to school, we teach them to work hard and succeed through intelligence. Today, merit has become the biggest casualty, and opportunities for these students are being blocked.”
Commenting on a protest by NC’s Srinagar MP Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi outside the chief minister’s residence, Mufti expressed disappointment with the NC MPs’ silence on the issue.
“The people elected NC representatives to Parliament expecting them to address or at least voice these concerns. However, not a single MP has spoken up on this matter despite direct Central rule in JK at the time,” she concluded.
