‘Is J&K Bank Abandoning Kashmir?’ Apni Party Chief Slams Lending Drop, Skewed Recruitment, Board Imbalance

Srinagar: Apni Party president and former Jammu & Kashmir finance minister Syed Altaf Bukhari launched a scathing attack on J&K Bank, alleging that the institution was drifting away from its core responsibility of serving the region.

He questioned its lending priorities, recruitment practices, board composition, and even claimed that there were efforts underway to shift the bank’s headquarters from Srinagar; an allegation he termed as “scary news” for Kashmir.

Bukhari said he was “saddened” to see the bank’s current performance. He pointed out that credit growth in J&K stood at just 9%, while lending outside the Union Territory had surged to nearly 30%.

However, he argued that despite higher non-performing assets in Kashmir, curbing loans locally while expanding operations elsewhere was unjustifiable.

“This means J&K Bank has pulled its hand somewhere. Lending in J&K has been shut down and lending in the rest of the country is increasing. This is a problem for us,” he added.

Meanwhile, Bukhari raised concerns over recruitment policies, alleging that jobs outside J&K were being filled by non-domiciles. He stressed that Kashmiri youth had traditionally seen the bank as their own institution, fostering accountability and emotional investment.

“When the children of J&K work in J&K, they have an emotional connection that it is their own bank. That is why they try to make a profit. Because it is our own bank,” he said, adding that outsiders lacked such attachment.

He also questioned the composition of the bank’s board of directors, claiming that out of 13–16 members, only one represented Kashmir. “What kind of justice is this?” he asked, demanding immediate clarification and warning against deliberate exclusion.

According to him, the absence of Kashmiri representation on the board was a serious imbalance that needed urgent correction.

Another serious allegation was that the bank’s headquarters might be shifted from Srinagar. Bukhari warned that such a move would amount to an emotional betrayal of the people of Kashmir.

“Maybe they are not aware of the ground realities. They do not understand that emotions can be played to an extent, but not after that,” he cautioned.

He reminded that the J&K government is the majority shareholder of the bank, placing responsibility squarely on the administration.

He pointed out that Chief Minister Omar Abdullah also holds the finance portfolio, making it the government’s duty to safeguard the institution’s integrity.

Appealing to the authorities, Bukhari urged intervention to halt what he described as “suicidal attacks” on Kashmir’s economic identity. He warned that ignoring local sentiment could have grave consequences for the region’s trust in its premier financial institution.