Amit Shah sets 2026 deadline to make Jammu & Kashmir terror-free | Watch his Lok Sabha speech

After over six hours of debate spanning over two days and a reply by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, the Lok Sabha passed the two Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation bills.

The home minister said the two bills related to Jammu and Kashmir brought by the government 'will give justice to those deprived of their rights for the last 70 years'. He asserted that 'reservation to the displaced people will give them a voice in the legislature'.

While the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation bill seeks to nominate two members from the Kashmiri migrant community and one representing the displaced persons from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) to the legislative assembly, the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Bill, will change the nomenclature of a section of people who are eligible for quota in appointment and admission.

Among the two nominated Kashmiri Migrant community members, one would be a woman.

One seat in the Jammu and Kashmir assembly will be set aside for people displaced from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, the home minister said.

"Earlier there were 37 seats in Jammu, now there are 43. Earlier there were 46 in Kashmir, now there are 47 and in PoK, 24 seats have been reserved since PoK is ours...", he said.

Calling out India's first Prime Minister for his alleged 'blunders', Shah said that 'had Jawaharlal Nehru taken right steps, PoK would have been part of India now'.

He said that Nehru's first mistake was announcing a ceasefire and then taking the Kashmir issue to the United Nations.

He blamed Nehru for not taking the right steps and added that it was because of him that 'a large chunk of territory has been ceded, otherwise Pakistan-occupied Kashmir would have been part of India."

The home minister stated that 'over a period of time' Jammu and Kashmir would be terrorism-free and the feeling of separatism would also fade. He said a plan to have zero terror incidents in Jammu and Kashmir has been in force for the last three years and it will be successful by 2026 when there will be no violence.

He further blamed the Congress for the condition of migrant Kashmiri Pandits and remarked, "Those responsible for stopping it were enjoying vacations in England... When Kashmiri Pandits were displaced, they were forced to live as refugees in their country. According to the present data around 46,631 families and 1,57,968 people were displaced in their own country. This Bill is to get them rights, this Bill is to give them representation..."