'Ladakh up for sale': Omar Abdullah hits out at Centre for amending J&K land laws

Any Indian citizen now can buy land in Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh as the Centre on Tuesday issued one of the most important orders post the abrogation of Article 370. Reacting to the amendments made to the land laws, allowing anyone to buy land in the erstwhile state, former Chief Minister and vice president National Conference, Omar Abdullah on Tuesday said that Ladakh “was up for sale.”

“Unacceptable amendments to the land ownership laws of J&K. Even the tokenism of domicile has been done away with when purchasing non-agricultural land & transfer of agricultural land has been made easier. J&K is now up for sale & the poorer small landholding owners will suffer,” Omar Abdullah tweeted.

'Peoples Democratic Party, President, Mehbooba Mufti called the new laws “as a part of central governments nefarious designs to disempower & disenfranchise people of J&K. From the unconstitutional scrapping of Article 370 to facilitating loot of our natural resources & finally putting land in J&K up for sale”.

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“After failing on all fronts to provide roti & rozgar to people, BJP is creating such laws to whet the appetite of a gullible electorate. Such brazen measures reinforces the need of people of all three provinces of J&K to fight unitedly,” Mufti further tweeted.
However, Jammu and Kashmir, Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha during press conference today said that there was a need for development in Jammu and Kashmir for which setting up of industries was necessary.

“Agricultural land will be protected; however, we also want that like other parts of India, industries should be set in Jammu and Kashmir as well,” Sinha said in response to a question asked by one of the press reporters. 

Meanwhile, People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration, Spokesperson Sajjad Gani Lone, in a statement issued said that “we strongly condemned repeal of J&K Land Laws thereby stripping the Permanent Residents of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh of exclusive right to acquire and hold immovable property in the State - now unconstitutionally divided into two Union Territories and granting such rights to non-state subjects,”.

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Terming the MHA Order as a huge betrayal, Lone said that this is a massive assault on the rights of the people of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh and grossly unconstitutional. “The repeal of big estates abolition Act - first ever agrarian reform in subcontinent, is an insult to the sacrifices of thousands of freedom fighters and farmers who fought against an autocratic and oppressive rule and a crude attempt to rewrite history,”.

Pertinently, The Ministry of Home Affairs on Tuesday notified new land laws for the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. With these new laws in UT, any Indian citizen can now buy land in the region. In its order, the Home Ministry said the new laws will be called the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Adaptation of Central Laws) Third Order, 2020. It added that it will come into effect immediately.

The Centre said the “permanent resident of the state” clause has been omitted now. Under this, 12 state laws have been repealed and 26 others have been adapted with changes or substitutes. Those completely repealed include the Jammu and Kashmir Alienation of Land Act, 1995, the Jammu and Kashmir Big Landed Estates Abolition Act, the Jammu and Kashmir Common Lands (Regulation) Act, 1956, and the Jammu and Kashmir Consolidation of Holdings Act, 1962.

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