Council to have full strength of 36 first time after 1974

Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Dec 2: For the first time in the over four decades, the Legislative Council was inching close to have its full strength of 36 after polling for four seats from Panchayat quota tomorrow, which could be followed by elections to two remaining vacancies from Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) after elections to the Municipalities early next year.
During past four decades, the Upper House of the Legislature has never witnessed its full strength of 36 mainly due to absence of Panchayats and ULBs as elections were not held for rural bodies during past 38 years while polls for Municipalities were held in 2005 after 26 years and the civic bodies, which completed their term in 2010, were still awaiting fresh polling.
Official sources told the Excelsior that as against sanctioned strength of 36, the Upper House has 30 members at present. After 1974 when elections were last held for four seats of MLCs from Panchayat quota (the members completed their six years term in 1980), the Council strength remained confined to 30.
It was in 2005 after elections to urban civic bodies after 26 years that the Legislative Council strength had gone up to 32 with polls being held for two seats of Municipalities’ quota in the Upper House, one each in Jammu and Kashmir divisions. One of the representatives of the civic bodies had quit midway while another has completed the term.
Out of present 30 members of the Legislative Council, 25 belonged to National Conference-Congress coalition (14 to NC and 11 to Congress) while opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has four MLCs and National Panthers Party one. Council Chairman Amrit Malhotra belonged to the Congress while Deputy Chairman Mohammad Yusuf Taing is a National Conference MLC.
Though the Government had to nominate eight members to the Upper House from academicians, intellectuals, social workers etc, the nominations were generally made from the political leaders of the ruling parties, which were at the helm of affairs at the time of nominations.
With election for four seats of the Legislative Council set be held tomorrow, first time after 1974, and results to be declared on December 6, strength of the Council would go up to 34 for the first time in nearly four decades, sources said.
With Government contemplating to hold elections to Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) early next year, two remaining vacancies of the Upper House would be filled after polling to them. While there were two posts each for Panchayat quota for Jammu and Kashmir divisions from Panchayats, the number of MLCs was one each for the two divisions from the Municipalities.
Two seats of Urban Local bodies were filled in October 2005 as ULB elections were held in January 2005 after a gap of 26 years. PDP’s Nizam-ud-Din Bhat was elected from a seat reserved for Kashmir divisions from the ULBs while former Deputy Chairman of Legislative Council and senior Congress leader, Arvinder Singh Micky was elected from Jammu region.
Nizam-ud-Din Bhat had given up membership of the Upper House in 2009 after his election to the Legislative Assembly while Micky’s six year term expired in September last year.
As elections to the Municipal Corporations and Committees were not held by the Government after March 2010 when they completed their term, the two seats of ULBs remained vacant after the exit of Nizam-ud-Din Bhat and Arvinder Singh Micky.
But with the filling up of four seats in the Upper House from the quota of Panchayats, the number of seats in the Upper House would rise to 34 as only two seats of ULBs would remain vacant.
During past four decades, the vacancies of Upper House from the Panchayats quota couldn’t be filled as complete elections to Panchayats were not held after 1974. Elections to few Panchayats were held in 2001. As the elections to all Panchayats couldn’t be completed, the existing Panchayats were also dissolved without completion of their term.
Eight MLCs are completing their term in March next year. They included Medical Education Minister RS Chib. Elections to them were likely to be held by the end of February or start of March to fill up the vacancies. After every two years, eight members (directly elected by the MLAs) have to retire in the Legislative Council.

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