Muslim-Hindu Demography Of Jammu And Kashmir: What The Census Numbers Show

The land laws that were amended and notified by the Centre for the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir on Monday (October 26) have omitted the protection earlier available to its “permanent residents”. It allows the purchase of non-agricultural land by outsiders, even though the government may provide some protection through notifications.

The decision, celebrated by BJP leaders and spokespersons, has given fresh wind to fears expressed by political parties in Kashmir about attempts to fundamentally alter the demography of the Valley. On Tuesday, National Conference leader Omar Abdullah posted on Twitter that the Centre had now ended “even the tokenism of domicile”, and that “J&K is now up for sale”.

The Census of 2011 showed that the religious make-up of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir had remained almost entirely unchanged over the previous half century. The special status of Jammu and Kashmir under the Constitution was removed on August 5, 2019, and the state was split into two Union Territories.

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