J&K L-G can nominate MLAs without elected govt’s advice: MHA to HC

A political storm erupted in Jammu and Kashmir after the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) informed the High Court of J&K and Ladakh that the Lieutenant Governor (L-G) has the authority to nominate five members to the Legislative Assembly without the advice of the elected government.

The MHA made the statement in an affidavit in response to a petition filed by senior Congress leader Ravinder Kumar Sharma. The ministry stated that the L-G can nominate five members to ensure inclusivity and adequate representation of all communities.

In addition to the 90 elected representatives, the J&K Reorganization Act, 2019, provides for the nomination of five more members. These include two women, two Kashmiri migrants (including one woman), and one member from the displaced community of Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK).

Ravinder Sharma said he would file a rejoinder to the MHA’s reply before the final hearing date is fixed by the High Court. The next hearing is scheduled for August 14, when the plea for a final hearing date will be considered. Senior Supreme Court advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi is expected to appear on behalf of the petitioner.

Sharma, who is also the chief spokesperson of the Congress party, criticised the timing of the MHA’s affidavit, saying it was filed at the eleventh hour despite several previous opportunities.

“We will examine the reply with our senior lawyers and seek time to file a rejoinder before the court fixes a date for the final hearing,” he said.

Sharma has challenged the provision in the J&K Reorganization Act that allows the L-G to nominate five MLAs without the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers.

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti strongly criticised the Centre’s stance. “Nowhere else in the country does the Centre handpick legislators to override the public mandate. In India’s only Muslim-majority region, long marred by conflict, this move feels less like governance and more like control,” she said.

“Following the illegal bifurcation of the state, skewed delimitation, and discriminatory seat reservations, this nomination is yet another body blow to the idea of democracy in J&K.”

She further asserted that representation must be earned through the people’s vote, not granted by central decree. “This cannot be allowed to become the norm. I hope the Omar Abdullah-led government rises to the occasion by challenging this undemocratic precedent, because silence now would be complicity later,” she said.

National Conference (NC) chief spokesperson Tanvir Sadiq echoed similar concerns, stating:

“When J&K has an elected government with an absolute majority, bypassing it to allow the L-G to handpick members is not governance; it’s contempt for the people’s mandate. It strikes at the heart of parliamentary democracy, ignores the constitutional spirit of ‘aid and advice’, and sets a dangerous precedent where unelected appointees can rewrite the people’s verdict.”

The MHA, in its affidavit, stated: “Once the Parliament by law recognises the Lieutenant Governor as a distinct authority from the government of the Union Territory under a parliamentary enactment, it necessarily follows that when a power is conferred upon the L-G, it must be exercised as a statutory function and not merely as an extension of his duties as the head of the UT Government. Sections 15, 15A, and 15B of the J&K Reorganization Act, 2019, specifically recognise the power and authority of the L-G to nominate members to the Legislative Assembly.”

“There can be no manner of doubt that it is the Lieutenant Governor who has to exercise this statutory duty in his discretion, as a statutory functionary, and not as an extension of the government — thus, without aid and advice,” the affidavit added.