Amit Shah announces a quota in Kashmir which is a first for India

 Amit Shah announces a quota in Kashmir which is a first for India

Union Home Minister kicks off BJP election campaign with rally in Rajouri

Rajouri/Jammu:

Union Home Minister Amit Shah today announced in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri that the Pahari community will soon get reservation in education and jobs as Scheduled Tribes (STs) - a pre-poll promise aimed at expanding the support base of the BJP. If implemented, this quota would be the first instance of a linguistic group receiving reservation in India. The Central Government will have to amend the Reservation Act in Parliament for this.

"The GD Sharma Commission constituted by the government has sent its report and recommended reservation for Gujjar, Bakarwal and Pahari communities. It will be given soon," Shah said at a rally. year.

He claimed that such reservation was possible only when the special status of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 was abolished. Now the minorities, dalits, tribals, hills will get their due.

The hills in the union territory have a population of about 6 lakh, of whom 55 per cent are Hindus and the rest are Muslims. But the Gujjar and Bakarwal communities - who already have 10 per cent ST quota - are opposing the grant of tribal status to the hills, saying Muslims and Hindus from privileged sections should not get quota on the basis of language alone .

Mr Shah said the existing STs "will not lose anything". He claimed that "some people" tried to "instigate" the Gujjars and Bakarwals, but "people saw through their designs".

BJP supporters gathered for a rally to be addressed by Amit Shah in Rajouri, as part of his three-day yatra that began yesterday in Baramulla in north Kashmir, he has another rally on Wednesday.

He urged the crowd to thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the move on August 5, 2019, when Articles 35A and 370, constitutional provisions giving some autonomy to Jammu and Kashmir, were hollowed out. The state was divided into two union territories - Ladakh was thus separated - of which Jammu and Kashmir may have an elected assembly. The first elections are likely to be held early next year as the process of demarcation of constituencies and finalization of electoral rolls is almost over.

"I want to appeal to you to free Jammu and Kashmir from the clutches of three families ruling here," Mr Shah said. He did not name the families, although the PDP of the Muftis and the National Conference of the Abdullahs have been his targets, as have been the Gandhi family of the Congress.

Jammu and Kashmir, which was the state, last had an elected government four years ago, with the BJP as a junior ally and PDP's Mehbooba Mufti as chief minister. The BJP's withdrawal of support led to the collapse of that government, and the region has been under central rule since June 2018.

Mr Shah asked people to "strengthen" Narendra Modi, who "gave reservation to the hills and Gujjars and empowered them".

“Power is now with 30,000 people, who were elected to panchayats and zilla parishads through fair elections,” he said, adding that village level elections have already been held.

“Earlier, all the money sent by the Center for development was usurped by some people, but now everything is spent on welfare,” he claimed.

He also claimed that the security situation is "much better" now due to the "strong action" taken by the Modi government against terrorists.

Mehbooba Mufti has said that BJP's claims belie the ground reality. "It is only dividing communities using reservations," he alleged.