The Jammu and Kashmir government on Sunday prevented a proposed protest against the existing reservation policy by placing several political leaders, including Srinagar MP Aga Ruhullah Mehdi and PDP leader Iltija Mufti, under house arrest and sealing the venue where the sit-in was scheduled.
A report from Srinagar said that the police barricaded a park in Srinagar where members of the Open Merit Students Association were to hold a sit-in, prompting the group to call off the protest.
The association, which has been demanding a rationalisation of the reservation policy for several months, said the decision was taken due to “circumstances beyond our control”.
Open-merit students argue that the current policy disproportionately benefits reserved categories, which they claim constitute around 30 per cent of the population but account for nearly 60 per cent of government jobs and seats in professional colleges. They also contend that candidates from reserved categories can compete for open-merit seats, further reducing opportunities for general-category students.
Several political leaders said they were confined to their homes ahead of the planned protest.
In a post on X, the office of Srinagar MP Aga Ruhullah Mehdi said police had officially informed him that he was under house arrest and that armed personnel had been deployed outside his residence. The post also alleged that some students were detained and their families intimidated by the police.
PDP leader Iltija Mufti and MLA Waheed Parra were also reportedly placed under house arrest. In a social media post, Iltija Mufti questioned the grounds for the action, describing it as an example of the prevailing security-driven approach in the Valley.
National Conference president Farooq Abdullah defended the government’s move, backing the decision to prevent the protest.
