PDP leader alleges two-year delay in releasing reservation panel report; questions government over jobs, age limits and representation of open merit candidates
Srinagar, Sept 19: Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leader Iltija Mufti on Saturday hit out at the National Conference-led Jammu and Kashmir government over the delay in making public the report of the committee constituted to examine the reservation policy, alleging that open merit students had been left waiting for justice.
Speaking to reporters during a protest at the PDP headquarters in Srinagar,Iltija said open merit students had been assured that their concerns would be addressed and the committee report would be released within six months.
“Two years have passed. We have not seen that report to this day,” she said.
Iltija said the government had promised to make the findings of the committee public but had failed to table the report. She alleged that open merit candidates were being disadvantaged in government recruitment and referred to the Deputy Superintendent of Police selection list, claiming that only 11 candidates were from the open merit category.
“We are here to remind Omar Abdullah that you have to deliver justice to the youth of Jammu and Kashmir,” she said.
Taking aim at the government’s employment policy,Iltija alleged that outsourcing was being used instead of creating the promised employment opportunities for the youth.
“You had told the youth here that you would provide one lakh jobs. Instead, you are selling jobs,” she alleged.
She questioned how long young aspirants from economically weaker families could continue appearing for competitive examinations, saying many parents were labourers and even mortgaged their land to support their children’s education.
Mufti also alleged that the recruitment system was leading to the exclusion of Kashmiris from the bureaucracy, describing it as “institutional apartheid” and “institutional weeding out of the Kashmiri population”.
“This is our state, this is our land. You cannot dispossess us from it. You cannot exclude the youth of Jammu and Kashmir from jobs and examinations,” she said.
At the same time, she stressed that her criticism was not directed against any community.
“We are not against any community. We are saying that you made a promise to these people that you would ensure justice for open merit students,” Iltija said.
She also criticised changes to the age limit and examination attempts, alleging that the upper age limit had been reduced from 38 to 32 years and that attempts had been capped at six for competitive examinations.
“We do not want merit to be killed,” she said, arguing that the government should address the concerns of open merit aspirants.
Iltija also referred to the pending demands of medical interns, NHM employees and other sections, alleging that several issues had remained unresolved despite repeated assurances.
“Any issue — medical interns, their stipend, NHM employees or open merit students — you are not executing anything that you should be executing,” she said.
The PDP leader said she had joined the protest to remind the NC-led government of its commitment to the youth and open merit students and demanded that the long-pending committee report be made public.
“My purpose is to remind the Jammu and Kashmir government that you made a very big promise to these students and the youth of Jammu and Kashmir — that you would present this report,” she said.
