SRINAGAR, DEC 28 – Additional security forces were deployed outside the residence of ruling National Conference MP Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi on Sunday, with his aides stating that the Srinagar MP had been placed under house arrest ahead of a scheduled protest by Open Merit category aspirants.
According to sources, the deployment of police and paramilitary personnel outside Ruhullah’s residence prevented him from participating in the protest against the reservation policy.
In a post on social media platform X, the Office of Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi said that police had officially informed the MP that he had been placed under house arrest and barred from stepping outside. The post also claimed that students had been arrested late Saturday night and that their families were intimidated by the police for demanding a “fair chance at success through a rational reservation policy.”
Former Srinagar mayor Junaid Azim Mattu said late Saturday night that a heavy deployment of Jammu and Kashmir Police and CRPF personnel was made outside his residence ahead of his participation in a student sit-in.
“A policy of apartheid against students can neither attain legitimacy nor permanence by curbing voices seeking justice,” Mattu said, adding that he stood with the students.
Ruhullah had earlier issued an ultimatum to the Jammu and Kashmir administration over the long-pending demand for rationalisation of reservations, stating that he would join protesting students and unemployed youth if the government failed to engage with them by Saturday.
In another post on X, the NC leader said he had not abandoned the students and urged the government to initiate dialogue and explain the steps taken so far to address their concerns.
He said that if no talks were held, he would sit with the students on Sunday at the same venue where a similar protest was held in December last year.
Following the formation of the National Conference government under Chief Minister Omar Abdullah in late 2024, a review of the reservation policy was promised.
In December 2025, the cabinet approved a revised reservation framework, including a reduction in quotas under categories such as Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) and Reserved Backward Areas(RBA), with the stated aim of increasing seats under Open Merit.
The proposal has since been forwarded to Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha for final approval.(KNS)
