Srinagar, June 19 (UNI) A day after the cabinet sub-committee report on reservation was tabled in Cabinet meeting, Opposition leaders here have hit out at the J&K government for failing to act on its six-month-old promise to resolve the reservation issue.





The J&K Cabinet, according to government sources, has sent the report of the cabinet sub-committee to the law department for their opinion. This came a day before the six-month deadline for the rationalisation of reservation in employment ended.





Peoples Democratic Party leader and MLA Waheed Parra said that six months ago, the J&K government promised to resolve the Reservation issue through a subcommittee report.



“That deadline has passed, leaving thousands of students heartbroken and disillusioned, their trust in the system shattered and their futures put on hold,” Parra said.





“This is a deliberate denial of justice. These students have already endured violence, lockdowns, and lost opportunities. Now, as they seek fair representation and rationalised reservation, the government is pushing them further to the margins,” the PDP leader said.





Parra claimed that the ruling National Conference government has the power to strike down the BJP-“imposed policy” with a single administrative order.



“But the party that promised to reverse BJP’s damage is now complicit in continuing it. If this is their response to a pressing youth issue well within their control to solve, then what should we expect on Article 370, statehood, or the Wakf Amendment Bill which requires them to speak truth to power?,” he asked.





Parra warned that erasing merit and denying hope to Kashmiri youth is not just an injustice but a national security concern, as disillusionment can push vulnerable youth towards radicalism.



“If the Kashmiri youth are not offered hope, it will only empower subversive elements, further destabilizing a generation and future. The government’s inaction risks pushing these young people into a corner, forcing them to choose between studying and preparing to face the world or fighting against a system that has failed them,” he said.



Parra urged that the government must act now, with the urgency this issue demands.



“It cannot continue to hide behind excuses while the students’ futures hang in the balance. Rationalisation of reservation and proportional representation represent the only fair path forward, and it must be implemented without further delay,” he added.





Peoples Conference Chairman and MLA Sajad Lone said he has all along maintained that the government is clueless on reservations and has no intentions of doing anything.



“Now coming to this draft proposal. To the best of my knowledge anything sent to cabinet should be vetted by the law department. It is not the other way round. You can’t send something to cabinet which is outside the domain of law. It looks like another round of time wasting tactics,” Lone said on X.



Apni Party president Altaf Bukhari asked the government to set a clear timeline to resolve the reservation issue.



“With each passing day, merit continues to get undermined. Government must act swiftly and avoid any delaying tactics,” Bukhari said.



Jailed Member Parliament Engineer Rashid’s party Awami Itihaad Party (AIP) accused NC of betraying the aspirations of lakhs of meritorious youth from the General Category.



“This is not governance—it’s an elaborate circus of deceit, delay and diversion. The Omar Abdullah government has once again proved that its words are hollow and its promises mere gimmicks. After over six months of public build-up, backdoor committee sittings and false assurances, the so-called CSC report has not even reached the Cabinet table in any serious form. What more proof do we need of their sheer indifference towards justice for open merit candidates?” Chief Spokesperson Inam Un Nabi said in a statement.



The AIP spokesperson warned that the continued marginalisation of Open Merit candidates will have far-reaching consequences.





The amended controversial Reservation policy that was introduced last year in March by J&K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha had met with protests by the Open Merit candidates, who claimed that despite being 70% of the UT's population they got less than 30% of the share in government jobs and scholarship.











The Lieutenant Governor amended the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation Act, 2004 which enhanced reservation from 43% to 70% in government jobs. The jump was because Special Tribe (ST) status was given to the Pahari community.







Later J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah formed the Cabinet Sub-Committee to examine the contentious policy. The committee formed in December last year was given six months time.





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