Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir’s ruling party, the National Conference (NC), is once again in trouble over the reservation policy. Disgruntled NC MP Aga Ruhullah Mehdi has announced a protest against Omar Abdullah’s government next month. Mehdi is protesting the delay in reviewing the controversial reservation policy, which has angered youth and students.
Issuing an ultimatum to the Omar government, MP Ruhullah said that after the conclusion of the upcoming winter session of Parliament on December 20, he will protest with students and youth across Jammu and Kashmir, who are demanding a review of the reservation policy implemented by the Lieutenant Governor’s administration in 2022.
On December 20 last year, Aga Ruhullah Mehdi led a protest of hundreds of students and youth outside Omar Abdullah’s residence in the Gupkar area of Srinagar, demanding a review of the reservation policy.
The MP’s announcement came after the Jammu and Kashmir Services Selection Board (JKSSB) advertised 600 Accounts Assistant positions in the Finance Department, with 240 reserved for the general category and the remaining 360 for the reserved category.
In the post, Ruhullah stated that the government had stated in 2024 that it would review the reservation policy, which provides over 70 percent reservation for students and candidates from reserved categories in jobs and admissions to professional colleges, within six months. He implied that the government was dragging the issue out and had not addressed it even after a year.
Following Ruhullah’s protest, the Jammu and Kashmir government formed a cabinet subcommittee. At the time, Chief Minister Omar had stated that the committee would submit a report to review the controversial reservation policy within six months. Before the Budgam Assembly by-election, Omar had stated that the committee had submitted its report and would issue a memorandum to Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha for approval. The committee included Social Welfare and Education Minister Sakina Ittoo, Tribal Affairs Minister Javed Ahmed Rana, and Youth Services and Sports Minister Satish Sharma.
Without naming the Chief Minister, MP Ruhullah appealed to Omar Abdullah to meet with the students, resolve the issue properly, and bring them on board. He said, “If this issue remains unresolved after the end of this Parliament session on December 20th, I will sit with them again, just as we did last December. This time it won’t be for just one day.”
Anti-reservation activist Sahil Pare expressed dismay over reservations, saying that merit-based youth are becoming stressed out after seeing their careers served on a platter. He said, “Where is the report of the sub-committee formed to correct this imbalance? Every exam, every notification, and every list is excluding general category students from the system. This isn’t welfare, it’s systematic exclusion. This is injustice. This is how you ruin a generation.”
Another activist, Ehtesham Khan, said the new advertisement was not about welfare but about exclusion. He said, “Young candidates are crumbling under the burden of a system that rewards nothing but merit. Reservations have not only created imbalances but also destroyed futures.”
