SRINAGAR: National Conference (NC) has submitted a list of four objections to the Delimitation Commission on its draft proposing six additional Assembly seats to the Jammu region and only one to Kashmir.
NC MP, Justice (Retd) Hasnain Masoodi told this newspaper on Sunday that the party submitted its objections to the Delimitation Commission on December 31.
The Delimitation Commission has in its draft proposed six additional seats for the Jammu region and only one for Kashmir. If the suggestions figure in the final report, in the 90-member J&K Assembly, Kashmir’s seats will rise from 46 to 47, while in the Jammu region, number of seats will increase from 37 to 43.
Masoodi said: “The delimitation exercise can’t go ahead, as the law under which the exercise is proceeding is being questioned and examined by the Supreme Court to find whether it is constitutional or not. In the entire country, the delimitation is to take place after 2031 after figures of the 2026 census are available. You went ahead with elections in Assam and elsewhere without delimitation, so why is J&K being singled out.”
Masoodi said in their second point, the party mentioned that the Delimitation Commission justified the exercise saying it is being carried out under the J&K Reorganisation Act which is a constitutionally suspect law, which has increased seats of the Assembly, and they have to find and locate the seats.
"But in Reorganisation Act of Andhra Pradesh, two states AP and Telangana were created and in both the states, elections were held without any delimitation,” the NC MP said.
Masoodi added: “Population is the first and foremost consideration for delimitation. We go for delimitation because we anticipate that there is an increase in population and we want to give representation to the increased population as well. But here in this draft, it has not been respected.”
He said they felt the factors have been applied selectively.
“In case of 915 sq kms of Samba district, you have three seats while in twice the area in Ganderbal in central Kashmir, there are only two seats and in Kulgam, which has three times the area of Samba, there are only three seats.”