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People’s participation in the political process is a must for J&K to see stability with growth

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The changes in land laws in Jammu and Kashmir notified by the Centre on October 26 allow the purchase of land by those who are not permanent residents of the Union Territory, for the first time.

Only permanent residents could purchase land in the erstwhile (भूतपूर्व/पहला; former/previous; of or in an earlier time; in the past) State, which was reorganised as two UTs, J&K and Ladakh, in August 2019. One of the arguments against the now nullified (अमान्य; to cause something to have no value or effect) special status of J&K was that the restrictions on land transfers hampered (बाधा ड़ालना; to prevent someone doing something easily) investments.

J&K industrial policy had limited land holding of investors to designated enclaves (परिक्षेत्र/विदेशी अंतःक्षेत्र; an enclosed territory that is culturally distinct from the foreign territory that surrounds it). The changes in land laws were logical steps to follow the end of the special status. Some restrictions remain on the transfer of agricultural land for non­agricultural purposes, but this too can be cleared by the district collector. The government has said the changes will encourage investment and advance peace and progress in J&K.

The argument that these changes would help the people of the region might have been stronger if these were done in consultation with them. The irony (विडम्बना; a type of usually humorous expression in which you say the opposite of what you intend/mean) is that in all three regions — Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh — there is strong opposition to opening the land market to non­residents.

Political parties in J&K too have opposed the changes. Free movement of people, and an integrated (एकीकृत/समन्वित; with two or more things combined in order to become more effective) national market can advance development but India’s governance (शासन; the way that organizations or countries are managed at the highest level) structure accommodates (ठहरना/स्थान देना; to provide with a place to live or to be stored in) fears and concerns (चिंता/मामला; something that makes you feel worried) of local populations in this context in a measured manner.

There are several States which have provisions (प्रावधान/नियम; a law that a particular thing must happen or be done) to regulate ownership and transfer of land under Article 371 of the Constitution. The Centre is expected to announce new land laws for the UT of Ladakh before October 30, and it has promised to “safeguard (रक्षा/बचाव; to protect something from harm) interests of the people” regarding “all issues related to language, demography (जनसांख्यिकी; the study of changes in the number of births, marriages, deaths, etc. in a particular area during a period of time), ethnicity (जातीयता; a large group of people who have the same national, racial, or cultural origins), land and jobs”.

The Centre’s approach towards J&K has been marked by a lack of trust, which has accentuated (जोर दना; to emphasize something or to make something more noticeable) the alienation (अलगाव/अन्यसंक्रामण; the feeling that you have no connection with the people around you) of large sections of the population. Fears of deliberate (जानबूझकर/ध्यानपूर्वक; (often of something bad) intentional or planned) demographic engineering have dominated (हावी होना/ प्रभुत्व रखना; to have control over a place or person) politics in the Valley for long.

After the reorganisation of the State and the loss of its special status in 2019, the people of Jammu and Ladakh also turned nervous on this question. Desirable (वांछनीय/मनचाहा; worth having and wanted by most people) as it may be, there is no point forcing a particular path of development upon people. The situation is precarious (अनिश्चित/संदिग्ध; in a dangerous state because of not being safe) also because of the heavy hand (सख्त/ बेढंगा; using too much force in dealing with someone/something) of the state on political and civil society activities in J&K.

The unilateralism (एकतरफा; the process of deciding a policy or action without involving another group or country) that has come to define New Delhi’s dealings with J&K is achieving little. There is no wisdom in pushing through measures aimed to promote investment when the end result is political volatility (अस्थिरता/उत्तेजनशीलता; the quality of being likely to become angry suddenly).

The Centre’s policy towards J&K must be buttressed (पुश्ता करना/समर्थन देना; to make support for an idea or argument stronger by providing a good reason for it) by a robust (मजबूत/ज़बरदस्त; strong and healthy) political process that enables people’s participation and ensures stability with growth and development.

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