New Delhi/Srinagar: The Centre has significantly strengthened the authority of the Lieutenant Governor in Jammu and Kashmir, empowering him to make decisions on crucial matters such as police, and all-India services officers and granting sanctions for prosecution in various cases.
The opposition slammed the Union government’s move and termed it a step towards “disempowering” the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
The Union Home Ministry gave more powers to the LG on Friday by amending rules framed under the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019. This act, passed alongside the abrogation of Article 370, bifurcated the erstwhile state into two Union Territories — Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
In the past, proposals concerning police, public order, all-India services and the Anti-Corruption Bureau required approval from the Finance department of Jammu and Kashmir before reaching the LG.
Under the revised rules, such proposals must now be presented directly to the LG through the Chief Secretary of the Union territory.
The LG’s authority extends further to the appointment of the Advocate General and other law officers. These appointments, previously decided upon by the government, will now require the LG’s approval.
The Centre’s decision has met with criticism from some political parties in Jammu and Kashmir, who view it as an attempt to undermine the power of an elected government.
The Supreme Court has directed the restoration of statehood in Jammu and Kashmir “at the earliest” and holding elections to the assembly by September 30, 2024.
On Saturday, various political parties expressed their disapproval of the Centre’s move to grant additional powers to Jammu and Kashmir’s LG in matters concerning police and all-India service officers.
The Congress on Saturday alleged the Narendra Modi government’s “betrayal” of Jammu and Kashmir was on unabated and the Centre vesting more powers in the J&K LG was another example of “Samvidhan Hatya Diwas” continuing daily under its rule.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said the insertion of new sections giving more powers to the LG by amending the Rules under Section 55 of the J&K Reorganisation Act, 2019, has only two meanings.
One of those was that the Modi government “wants to delay the restoration of full statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, even though the Supreme Court has mandated Assembly Elections by September 30, 2024,” he said on ‘X’.
The other meaning was that “even if full statehood is restored, it wants to keep the newly elected state government at the mercy of the LG, by clamping its executive power,” he added.
Kharge said it was “another example of ‘Samvidhan Hatya Diwas’ continuing daily under the Modi government.” The Congress president also said the Modi government’s “betrayal of Jammu and Kashmir continues unabated”.
In a post on X, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said, “The only meaning that can be drawn from this notification is that full-fledged statehood for Jammu and Kashmir does not seem likely in the immediate future.”
There has been a consensus across political parties that Jammu and Kashmir must immediately become a full-fledged state of the Indian Union once again, he said.
“The self-anointed non-biological PM is on record saying that full-fledged statehood would be restored to Jammu and Kashmir, which had been reduced to a Union Territory in August 2019,” Ramesh said.
“The Supreme Court had mandated that elections to the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly should be held by September 30, 2024,” he said.
J&K Peoples Conference President, Sajad Lone said that the amendments passed yesterday are part of a continued systematic disempowerment of people of J&K.
“Another move to disempower and humiliate people of J&K. These amendments even violate the Jammu & Kashmir Reorganisation Act – 2019 . Yet again a humble appeal. Please don’t strengthen the perception of being at war with your own people in J and K, Lone posted on X.
The National Conference (NC) and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) labelled the decision as a step towards “disempowering” the people of Jammu and Kashmir while the Congress condemned the move as a “murder of democracy”.
The Apni Party called for a unified protest against the decision.
Following the Centre’s move, decisions regarding prosecution sanctions and filing appeals will also come under the LG’s purview. Additionally, matters related to prisons, the Directorate of Prosecution and the Forensic Science Laboratory will be handled directly by the LG.
“No proposal which requires previous concurrence of the Finance Department with regard to ‘Police’, ‘Public Order’, ‘All India Service’ and ‘Anti Corruption Bureau’ to exercise the discretion of the Lieutenant Governor under the Act shall be concurred or rejected unless it has been placed before the Lieutenant Governor through the Chief Secretary,” the Union home ministry notification stated.
The LG’s role in bureaucratic matters has also been amplified.
Proposals for postings and transfers of administrative secretaries, along with those concerning IAS and IPS officers, will be routed through the LG’s office.
Reacting to this order, NC vice-president Omar Abdullah raised concerns about the implications of having a “powerless and rubber stamp” chief minister who would need the LG’s approval even for minor appointments.
Despite acknowledging the timing of the decision in relation to upcoming elections, Abdullah emphasised the importance of a clear commitment towards restoring full statehood of Jammu and Kashmir.
“This is why a firm commitment to laying out the timeline for restoration of full and undiluted statehood for Jammu and Kashmir is a prerequisite for these polls.
“The people of Jammu and Kashmir deserve better than a powerless and rubber stamp CM who will have to beg the LG to get his/her peon appointed,” the NC vice-president said.
PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti’s daughter and her media advisor, Iltija Mufti, said the order seeks to disempower the powers of an elected government in Jammu and Kashmir.
“At a time when there’s been considerable speculation about GOI holding elections in J&K this new MHA order & farmaan widening the already unbridled powers of an unelected LG make a few things abundantly clear,” Iltija Mufti said in a post on X.
She said the order makes it clear that assembly elections will be conducted this year itself, and that the Centre “is well aware if & when state elections are held in J&K a non-BJP government will be elected”.
“The order seeks to disempower the powers of the next J&K state government only because BJP doesn’t want to cede control or lose its iron grip over Kashmiris. Statehood is out of the question. An elected government in J&K will be reduced to a municipality,” she added.
She raised concerns about the potential impact of the Union government’s decision on the upcoming assembly elections and the Centre’s reluctance to relinquish control in Jammu and Kashmir.
Jammu and Kashmir Congress president Vikar Rasool Wani echoed the sentiment of democracy being under threat, describing the move as a “murder of democracy” that would hinder the path to true statehood restoration.
Apni Party chief Altaf Bukhari appealed to Jammu and Kashmir’s political parties to shun differences and unitedly raise voices against the Centre’s move.
“Our state was downgraded and bifurcated in 2019. Parliament was promised that full statehood would be restored (in Jammu and Kashmir). The Supreme Court said so and the prime minister and home minister had also assured that.
“But this new decision aims at making the state hollow in which no powers will be left for an elected government… The people of Jammu and Kashmir do not support this,” Bukhari said at a press conference here.
Bukhari, a former minister, said if the Centre wants to create a “powerless assembly” in Jammu and Kashmir, it will not be acceptable.
“The Jammu and Kashmir assembly used to be the most powerful. If they (the Centre) cannot give us a powerful assembly, at least they should give us an assembly which is on par with the (assemblies in) the rest of the country.
“If they want the chief minister to be a toothless tiger and befool the people, then I do not think this will solve any of the issues confronting the people of Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.
The Apni Party chief said this is not an issue that affects any one political party.
“It affects our future. We appeal to all parties to shun political differences and come together on this issue. If we cannot stand united today, then we will never. We should ensure that the statehood that we get is not hollow and has all powers to serve people,” he said.
“We have to be united to serve the interests of the people. That can only be achieved if we have a strong government and a strong chief minister. We will have discussions with other political parties on the issue. We will go with the unanimous decision of all the parties,” Bukhari said.
He also appealed to the Centre to release Baramulla MP Sheikh Abdul Rashid, alias Engineer Rashid, from Tihar jail.
“Why is he not released even after securing five lakh votes? This is shameful. In a democracy, people show their will and they have spoken. Rashid should be released,” Bukhari said.
