J&K'S RESERVATION CONUNDRUM: Between Social Justice and Falling Standards

In a rural village close to Rajouri, a mother smiles as her son holds his appointment letter for a government job. It’s a moment of pride and delayed recognitionone the family lays at the door of the reservation system that finally provided them with a fair chance.

- MUSAIB BILAL

A few blocks away in Kathua, a general-category candidate, having scored 88 out of 100 in a competitive exam, sits empty-handedwhile a person with 45 gets a seat, courtesy quotas. This is the paradox of Jammu and Kashmir's reservation system today: it serves to uplift, but also unsettles.

From being a thin ladder of justice for Dalits and tribal communities, J&K’s reservation policy has now expanded to be a multi-lane highway with 70% of all educational as well as government job opportunities reserved under some sort of quota. The ride here has been anything but smooth. In the aftermath of Article 370's abrogation in 2019, the reservation system in the region faced seismic changes. The 2023 modifications included the Pahari community under the Scheduled Tribe (ST) list and doubled the Other Backward Classes (OBC) quota from 4% to 8%. The supporters cheered this as overdue recognition; the critics labeled it as a game of numbersmore ballots than proportions.

Now, the figures are different: 20% ST, 8% SC, 8% OBC, 10% EWS, and then quotas for residents of the borders, defence families, and physically challenged. Left out is the open merit category, now holding on to merely 30% of opportunities in a society in which it continues to constitute the majority.