Latest news with #JammuandKashmirOfficialLanguagesAct
Hindustan Times
4 days ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Mehbooba: Urdu being unfairly communalised in J&K
After the Central Administrative Tribunal's order staying the requirement of basic Urdu knowledge for the naib tehsildar exam in Jammu and Kashmir, Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti on Wednesday alleged that Urdu was being unfairly communalised. After the Central Administrative Tribunal's order staying the requirement of basic Urdu knowledge for the naib tehsildar exam in Jammu and Kashmir, Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti on Wednesday alleged that Urdu was being unfairly communalised. (HT File) Mehbooba Mufti took to X to express her disagreement over the CAT order. 'It is deeply unfortunate that our judiciary appears to be influenced by divisive politics. Urdu, a recognised official language for decades, is now being unfairly communalised,' she said. In an interim measure, the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT), Jammu, stayed Urdu language compulsion and ordered J&K Services Selection Board (JKSSB) to accept applications for the post of naib tehsildar from candidates who have graduation with knowledge of any of the five official languages enumerated in the Jammu and Kashmir Official Languages Act, 2020, which includes Hindi, Kashmiri, English, Dogri and Urdu. Following the order, the J&KSSB on July 15 put the recruitment process on hold as it deferred the advertisement calling for applications for NT posts which was issued in June 2025. Mufti said that J&K's administrative work has been maintained in Urdu. 'Our revenue records and administrative work continue to be maintained in Urdu, and it is only logical that applicants for the post of Naib Tehsildar possess basic proficiency in the language. This requirement is rooted purely in administrative efficiency not in any form of divisiveness,' she said. The CAT's order has been celebrated by Bharatiya Janata Party after it launched a campaign to remove Urdu as a mandatory qualification for naib tehsildar posts in Jammu Kashmir. PDP leader and MLA Pulwama, Waheed Parra alleged that BJP's attempt to view Urdu through a 'communal lens marks a dangerous and disgraceful new low' in our political discourse in J&K. Peoples Conference president and MLA Handwara Sajad Lone also voiced deep concern over the exclusion of Urdu as a qualifying requirement for the post of Naib Tehsildar in Jammu and Kashmir, calling it part of a 'systematic marginalisation' of the Kashmiri-speaking majority and a dangerous step toward the 'linguicide' of Urdu.
Time of India
5 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
CAT stays J&K govt order on ‘Urdu must' for naib tehsildar posts
JAMMU: In a landmark decision removing discrimination on the basis of language, Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) has stayed the Jammu and Kashmir govt order that made graduation in Urdu mandatory for applying to the post of naib tehsildar. The tribunal directed Jammu and Kashmir Services Selection Recruitment Board (SSRB) to accept applications from candidates possessing graduation in any of the five official languages listed in Jammu and Kashmir Official Languages Act, 2020, which includes Hindi, Kashmiri, English, Dogri, and Urdu. CAT issued notices to the respondents, directing them to file their reply within four weeks and scheduled the matter for hearing on August 13. BJP's J&K unit has welcomed the CAT decision. BJP's legislative party had held a dharna at civil secretariat and the assembly, pressing for the revocation of the govt order.
Indian Express
6 days ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
Govt notification making Urdu compulsory for nail tehsildar exam ‘discriminatory': J&K tribunal
A tribunal in Jammu and Kashmir has held as 'discriminatory' a government notification making Urdu compulsory for naib tehsildar exams in the union territory, instead saying that applications from candidates with knowledge of any of the five official languages in the Jammu and Kashmir Official Languages Act, 2020, should be considered. The decision from Central Administrative Tribunal came on the back of a petition filed by job seekers who were aggrieved by Jammu and Kashmir Services Selection Board (JKSSB)'s order on applications for the position of naib tehsildar. The J&K's five official languages include Hindi, Urdu, English, Kashmiri and Dogri. In its notification on June 9 for 75 revenue posts, the JKSSB specified that paper two of the exam will comprise checking the candidate's 'working knowledge of Urdu'. Significantly, almost all the revenue records and land settlements in Jammu and Kashmir are in Urdu, and naib tehsildars, being revenue officials, are expected to be well-versed with this language. In its order, a CAT bench comprising Member (Judicial) Rajinder Dogra and Ram Mohan Johri (Member Administrative) said: 'We are of the considered view that the provisions of the Jammu and Kashmir Revenue (Subordinate) Service Recruitment Rules of 2009, to the extent it mandates Urdu as the exclusive language qualification, prima facie appears to be discriminatory, especially in the light of the provisions of Jammu and Kashmir Official Languages Act, 2020'. This came after counsels for the applicants, senior advocate Abhinav Sharma with advocate Abhirash Sharma, made their arguments in court. The UT was represented by Additional Advocate Generals (AAGs) Rajesh Thappa and Sudesh Magotra, besides Deputy AG Hunar Gupta. 'This court hereby stays the operation of the relevant provisions of the Jammu and Kashmir Revenue (Subordinate) Service Recruitment Rules of 2009, insofar as they mandate Graduation with knowledge of Urdu as the minimum qualification for the post of Naib Tehsildar,' the Bench held while issuing notices to the respondents to file their reply within four weeks. The case has been fixed for August 13. The Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party welcomed the decision, calling the order 'illegal and discriminatory' 'It is our victory,' advocate R S Pathania, a BJP leader and a former MLA from Ramnagar in Udhampur, told reporters here. The BJP legislative party had held a dharna in front of the Civil Secretariat and the Legislative Assembly Complex Monday to protest the government order to make Urdu compulsory for naib tehsildar examinations in Jammu and Kashmir.
