Jammu and Kashmir Polity and Administration for JKSSB: Reorganisation Act, Institutions and Local Government

Polity and administration questions about Jammu and Kashmir appear in JKSSB, J&K Police and JKPSC papers, and they changed after 2019. Many older books still describe the old state. This guide explains how the Union Territory is governed now, the institutions you need to know, and the points that exam questions usually test.

1. From state to Union Territory

The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 was passed by Parliament in August 2019, after the provisions of Article 370 were abrogated on 5 August 2019. From 31 October 2019, the former state became two Union Territories: Jammu and Kashmir, which has a legislature, and Ladakh, which does not. Exam questions commonly ask for the date, the number of Union Territories, which one has a legislature, and the name of the head of the administration.

2. The Lieutenant Governor and the Council of Ministers

A Union Territory is administered by the President through an administrator. In Jammu and Kashmir, the administrator is the Lieutenant Governor. Because the Union Territory has a legislature, it also has a Council of Ministers headed by a Chief Minister, who advises the Lieutenant Governor on matters within the legislature's powers. Matters such as public order and police stay with the Lieutenant Governor under the Act. Ladakh is administered by its own Lieutenant Governor, without a legislature.

3. The Legislative Assembly

The Legislative Assembly of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir has 90 elected seats after the delimitation exercise. The Assembly makes laws on subjects in the State List and the Concurrent List, with certain exceptions. The Union Territory sends five members to the Lok Sabha and four to the Rajya Sabha, and Ladakh sends one member to the Lok Sabha.

4. The judiciary

The High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh is the common High Court for both Union Territories, with principal seats at Srinagar and Jammu. Below it are district courts and subordinate courts. Questions often ask for the name of the common High Court and the cities where it sits.

5. Panchayati Raj and local government

• The 73rd and 74th Amendments: after 2019, the provisions of the 73rd Amendment on Panchayats and the 74th Amendment on municipalities became applicable to the Union Territory
• The Jammu and Kashmir Panchayati Raj Act, 1989: the Act that created the Panchayat framework, amended in 2020 to introduce District Development Councils
• Three tiers: the Halqa Panchayat at the village level, the Block Development Council at the block level, and the District Development Council at the district level
• District Development Councils: the first elections to these Councils were held in December 2020
• Urban local bodies: municipal councils and corporations run towns and cities, with elected members and a head such as a Mayor in a corporation

6. Right to information and transparency

The central Right to Information Act, 2005 applies to Jammu and Kashmir after the 2019 reorganisation, replacing the earlier state law on the subject. The State Information Commission handles appeals, and the Act is part of the J&K syllabus for several posts, including the constable and Police posts.

7. Official languages

The Jammu and Kashmir Official Languages Act, 2020 recognised five official languages: Kashmiri, Dogri, Urdu, Hindi and English. This is a frequent one-mark question.

8. Revision table

Try it: Which Union Territory created on 31 October 2019 has no legislature?

How to prepare

Learn the structure in this order: the Act, the head of the administration, the legislature, the courts and then local government. Then solve questions on each block. Many questions are a single fact, so one day of focused revision with a short test at the end is enough to score well here.

Practise with the Reorganisation Act MCQs and the Panchayati Raj guide, and read the J&K general knowledge guide.