Prof. VirenderKoundal
When the Chief Minister recently announced that the upcoming National Law University (NLU) in Jammu and Kashmir would be set up in the Kashmir province, the statement reignited a deep and familiar sense of déjà vu across the Jammu region. Once again, people in Jammu are asking a simple question why are critical national institutions consistently diverted towards one region without a transparent feasibility study, public consultation, or consideration of regional balance? The NLU is not just another higher education institution; it is a national premier institute, akin to the IITs, IIMs, and AIIMS, meant to serve as a beacon of legal education, research, and policy in a federal democratic structure. Its location, therefore, must not be reduced to regional favoritism or political convenience. Rather, it should be guided by principles of equity, accessibility, and geographic balance principles that Jammu province has historically been denied.
The debate over the NLU’s location cannot be viewed in isolation. It must be understood against the long and painful history of discrimination faced by the Jammu province a region that has often been treated as a political appendage rather than an equal stakeholder in the governance and development of Jammu and Kashmir. From higher education to healthcare, from industrial investment to employment, Jammu’s struggle has been a continuous saga of neglect, protest, and belated justice.
The story dates back to 1982 when the government established the Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology (SKUAST) in Kashmir, completely ignoring Jammu’s agricultural diversity. Farmers, students, and academics in Jammu had to launch a sustained struggle to demand a separate institution to cater to the subtropical agro-climatic conditions of the region. Only after 17 long years, in 1999, was SKUAST-Jammu established. This was not a mere institutional demand it symbolized the deep structural marginalization Jammu faced in policy decisions that directly affected its socio-economic development.
A similar episode unfolded in 2009 when the Central University of Jammu and Kashmir was sanctioned by the central government. The initial proposal was again Kashmir-centric, with administrative and academic planning concentrated in the Valley. Massive protests broke out in Jammu, led by students, civil society, and academicians demanding a separate Central University. The agitation continued for months until the government finally relented and established a distinct Central University for Jammu in 2011.The episode was emblematic of Jammu’s recurring fight for parity in access to premier national institutions.
In 2015, the announcement of an All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) for Jammu and Kashmir was initially interpreted to mean a single institute for the entire Union Territory. When it became clear that the location was to be in Kashmir, Jammu erupted in protest. For over two months, the region witnessed a 72-day long agitation, uniting political parties, traders, and civil society under one demand equal access to premier healthcare. Ultimately, the government announced two AIIMS institutions one each in Awantipora (Kashmir) and Vijaypur (Jammu).That victory was hard-earned. It should have set a precedent for equitable policy decisions in future yet, the same cycle of discrimination seems to have resurfaced with the NLU.
The 2008 Amarnath land agitation remains one of the largest people’s movements in Jammu’s post-independence history. When the state government revoked the decision to transfer land to the Amarnath Shrine Board, massive protests erupted in the Valley, forcing a reversal of the decision. Jammu responded with equal intensity, perceiving the move as a denial of religious and regional rights. For two months, the region remained paralyzed as the people of Jammu asserted their dignity, demanding equal respect and decision-making power within the state’s governance framework.The episode laid bare the emotional and political fault lines that continue to define policy bias between the two provinces.
Recruitment to government posts, university faculties, and public services in the erstwhile state has often shown a skewed ratio favoring Kashmir. Successive Public Service Commission results and departmental recruitments have revealed that Jammu candidates remain underrepresented even in technical and administrative cadres. The demand for region-wise quotas and transparent recruitment mechanisms continues to echo, reflecting the sense of exclusion felt by the youth of Jammu. Despite its strategic location as the gateway to the Union Territory and proximity to Punjab, Himachal, and Delhi, Jammu has remained industrially underdeveloped. Most state investments, tourism projects, and infrastructural schemes have been concentrated in the Kashmir Valley, leaving Jammu’s potential as a logistics, manufacturing, and education hub largely untapped.
Until the 2022 Delimitation Commission’s intervention, Jammu remained grossly underrepresented in the Legislative Assembly. Although the region covers a much larger area and now holds a comparable population, the political structure historically ensured greater weightage for Kashmir. The latest delimitation exercise partially corrected this imbalance, but the mindset that perpetuated this structural inequality appears far from reformed.
The announcement that the National Law University a premier institution envisioned to nurture India’s top legal minds would be established in Kashmir has triggered a storm of questions. Why was this decision made without a feasibility study, public consultation, or objective evaluation of accessibility, infrastructure, and regional balance? Should such an important national institution not serve the entire Union Territory rather than being concentrated in one province? If the CM’s statement reflects a final policy stance, it risks reopening old wounds and reviving the trust deficit that has plagued Jammu’s relationship with successive administrations.
A National Law University is not merely a campus; it is a symbol of legal empowerment, constitutional learning, and public policy innovation. Its location must ensure accessibility for students from all regions, neutrality from political or regional influence, and integration with socio-economic and cultural diversity of the Union Territory. Geographically, Jammu and Kashmir’s unique topography makes central accessibility a critical factor. Jammu province connects naturally to Punjab, Himachal, and the rest of India through the national highway and rail network. Kashmir, by contrast, remains dependent on the Jammu-Srinagar highway, which is frequently blocked during winters and adverse weather.If the objective is to serve the entire Union Territory, then Bhaderwah (Doda district) or Ramban emerge as the most appropriate and strategically central locations for the NLU.
The Chenab Valley region comprising Doda, Kishtwar, and Ramban represents the geographical heart of Jammu and Kashmir. Establishing the NLU here would not only bridge the physical and psychological divide between Jammu and Kashmir, but also stimulate educational and economic growth in an underdeveloped mountainous region, and symbolize a new era of balanced regional development post-Article 370.Bhaderwah already hosts a campus of the University of Jammu, with a serene environment conducive to academic excellence. Ramban, on the other hand, lies on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, making it equidistant from both capitals a natural logistical midpoint for a truly Union Territory-wide institution. A centrally located NLU would promote inclusivity, accessibility, and symbolic unity a message that Jammu and Kashmir urgently needs in the post-reorganization era.
The National Law Universities across India such as NLSIU Bengaluru, NALSAR Hyderabad, and NLU Delhi are centres of legal excellence, producing Supreme Court judges, senior advocates, civil servants, and policy advisors. They represent India’s vision of global-standard legal education interdisciplinary, research-driven, and socially responsive.
The NLU in Jammu and Kashmir has the potential to strengthen constitutional awareness and rule of law in a region that has seen decades of political instability, provide high-quality legal education to the youth of both provinces, and foster policy-oriented research on federalism, national security, human rights, and conflict resolution issues deeply embedded in J&K’s socio-political fabric. However, if this institute is perceived as another symbol of regional bias, it will start its journey burdened by controversy rather than inspiration.
Before finalizing the NLU’s site, the government must: constitute a feasibility and location assessment committee including academicians, legal experts, and representatives from both provinces; evaluate infrastructure, connectivity, land availability, and accessibility for all districts; ensure public consultation with stakeholders; and prioritize balanced regional development in alignment with national institutional norms. Policy decisions made behind closed doors, without transparency or consultation, only deepen alienation. In a Union Territory that aspires for equitable development and lasting peace, symbolic justice through fair institutional distribution is as important as economic package.
The establishment of SKUAST-Jammu, the Central University of Jammu, and AIIMS Jammu did not happen overnight. Each came after massive public agitation, administrative inertia, and political pressure. The lesson from those movements is simple development cannot be sustained on imbalance. A healthy democracy thrives when every region feels represented, respected, and included in the development narrative.
Jammu and Kashmir today stands at a crossroads of opportunity. Post-Article 370, there is immense potential to rewrite its developmental and institutional trajectory with fairness, inclusion, and accountability. The NLU’s establishment offers a historic chance to break away from the old politics of region-centric favoritism and create a symbol of unity and equal opportunity. Let the National Law University not be a cause of division but a bridge of reconciliation one that serves both Jammu and Kashmir equally, both in spirit and substance. Bhaderwah or Ramban would not just be convenient midpoints; they would represent the moral midpoint between decades of discrimination and the promise of balanced progress.
The people of Jammu do not seek privilege they seek parity. They do not demand dominance only dignity and fairness. For decades, they have fought not to take away from others but to reclaim what has constitutionally been theirs: equal access to opportunity and development. The National Law University’s location decision is more than an administrative choice – it is a test of the government’s sincerity towards the idea of equal regional development in the post-reorganization era. Let the government of Jammu and Kashmir take this as an opportunity to demonstrate fairness by choosing a location that is central, accessible, and symbolic of unity. Let it not become another chapter in Jammu’s long chronicle of discrimination. If fairness prevails, the NLU can emerge as not just a centre of legal excellence, but also as a monument to justice itself for both regions, and for the idea of Jammu and Kashmir.
