Jammu, Jun 18: The J&K cabinet, which met under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday in Srinagar, asked the Cabinet-Sub-Committee to ìrework its reportî to address certain shortcomings so as to make it a legally tenable document.
Reliable sources, privy to the deliberations in the cabinet meeting, told Greater Kashmir that the report, which was presumed and reported to be the main agenda (of the meeting), was ìonly briefly discussed.î
Has it (report) been formally submitted to the cabinet, the response to this query was concise – No, not much deliberations took place on this report.
ìIt has not been submitted to the cabinet as there are certain shortcomings in it. It will be reworked vis-‡-vis those points to make it foolproof. Recommendations are likely to be deliberated further in the next one or two cabinet meetings,î sources, after being prodded, elaborated.
Has any date been fixed for the next cabinet meeting specifically for this purpose? This query had an open-ended reply, ìNo, not yet.î
Though the cabinet had a regular agenda too for deliberations, the hype across the political, media and social circles, for obvious reasons, mainly revolved around the recommendations of the three-member cabinet sub-committee, constituted for examining the grievances projected by a section of aspirants for various posts regarding Reservation Rules.
Entire agenda before the cabinet could not be cleared. A PHE project in Udhampur was cleared. Besides, there were specific deliberations about Shri Amarnath Yatra and tourism promotion, which are high on all minds at the moment. Similarly, a call was taken regarding a few other issues on the agenda following deliberations, sources stated.
Hype vis-‡-vis the CSC report on reservations had gained momentum after the six-month deadline granted to the panel ended on June 10, 2025.
Confronting the oppositionís banter and pressure from the stakeholders mainly the General category candidates, the Minister for Education, Health and Medical Education and Social Welfare Sakina Itoo, who is also part of the panel, posted on ëXí that the CSC would soon table its report in the cabinet.
The Cabinet Sub Committee constituted by the Jammu and Kashmir Government to examine the issue of reservation in the Union Territory has drafted its report within the stipulated time frame of 6 months. The report will be placed before the Cabinet when it meets,î she posted on June 10.
A day later, on June 11, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah stated, ìThe Cabinet Sub Committee (CSC) has prepared its report (on reservation). That report will be presented to the cabinet. Ö In the coming few days, the cabinet will take place and the CSC recommendations on the reservation will be submitted before it (cabinet). Then it will be looked into.î
The government, headed by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, on December 10, 2024 constituted this panel to examine the grievances projected by a section of aspirants for various posts regarding Reservation Rules.
The panel was constituted in compliance with the decision of the Council of Ministers (Decision No 012/03/2024), taken on November 22, 2024.
The J&K cabinet had decided to set up a cabinet sub-committee to review and rationalise reservation policy, in alignment with the promise of the (elected) government.
The three-member panel, comprising Minister for Health and Medical Education (H&ME), School Education, Higher Education and Social Welfare, Sakina Masood Itoo; Minister for Jal Shakti, Forest, Ecology & Environment and Tribal Affairs, Javed Ahmed Rana and Minister for Food, Civil Supplies & Consumer Affairs Satish Sharma, had been tasked to ìexamine the grievances projected by a section of aspirants for various posts regarding Reservation Rules, in consultation with all stakeholders.î
Following the cabinet meeting on November 22, the Chief Minister, while speaking to the media in Srinagar, said, ìThe cabinet has decided to form a sub-committee, comprising three ministers, to take a holistic view of the reservation issue. The decision has been taken as many youth, belonging to the open (General) category, are feeling that their rights have been usurped (following new reservation rules in J&K) while those brought in ambit donít want any curtailment.î
Though the panel on the reservation was a poll promise, the Omar government was forced to rush the process as its own MP Aga Syed Ruhullah had threatened to stage a dharna outside the Chief Ministerís residence if the government did not keep its word to rationalise reservation policy.
While the NC had to eat a humble pie, the opposition gleefully seized the opportunity to join Ruhullah and open-category candidates agitating their cause outside the CMís residence. Though the Chief Minister was able to pacify the candidates by meeting them at his residence and assuring them of justice, the sequence of events leading to the constitution of the panel and even thereafter saw a string of controversies also, including the one related to the deadline for CSC to submit the report.
The controversy erupted when during its maiden budget session under UT set-up, the government in a written reply in the J&K Legislative Assembly said that no specific timeline was fixed for submitting the report by the Cabinet Sub Committee. It rested only when the Chief Minister intervened, reassuring that the panel was given a six-month deadline to submit its report.
ìThe cabinet sub-committee constituted to examine the complicated issue of reservation in recruitment has been given a 6-month timeline to complete their report. The timeline was set by me after I met with a concerned group of job aspirants. This timeline, however, was not in the initial order setting up the sub-committee. That oversight will be corrected but rest assured the committee is working to complete its task in the set timeframe,î CM Omar posted on ëXí on March 15, 2025.
Even during the assembly session, Itoo had described it as a very sensitive issue.
ìThis is a very sensitive issue and it is not an easy proposition to resolve it. Every aspect will have to be examined and all stakeholders will have to be consulted and taken on board. Their representation has already reached us. It is being examined. Once the committee prepares and finalises its report on this account. Members too will be informed,î she had said.
