6 additional seats for Jammu, 1 for Kashmir proposed by Delimitation Commission

Delimitation commission, which includes five Lok Sabha MPs from Jammu & Kashmir, has also proposed nine seats for Scheduled Tribes (STs) and seven seats for Scheduled Castes (SCs).

Union MoS Dr. Jitendra Singh, National Conference chief Dr. Farooq Abdullah with others ahead of a meeting of Delimitation Commission on 20 December 2021 | ANI

New Delhi: The Delimitation Commission, set up to redraw the assembly seats of the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, is learnt to have proposed six additional seats for Jammu region and one for Kashmir Valley in its ‘Paper 1’ discussed with its five associate members on Monday.

Nine seats have been proposed for STs and seven for SCs in Jammu and Kashmir, sources said. This is the first time that seats have been proposed for STs in Jammu and Kashmir, they said.

The associate members — five Lok Sabha members from Jammu and Kashmir — attended the meeting. They have been asked to respond to the proposal by the end of this month.

Union minister Jitendra Singh and National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah were among those who attended the meeting.

The Delimitation Commission is headed by former Supreme Court judge Ranjana Prakash Desai. Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra is an ex-officio member of the panel.