Srinagar, : Jammu and Kashmir will once again have a voice in the Rajya Sabha after nearly five years, with three National Conference leaders scheduled to be sworn in on Monday, the opening day of the Winter Session of Parliament.
Shammi Oberoi, Sajjad Ahmad Kichloo and Chowdhary Mohammad Ramzan will take their oath as Rajya Sabha members before Vice-President and Rajya Sabha Chairman C.P. Radhakrishnan.
The trio was elected in the Rajya Sabha polls held on October 24, in which the National Conference secured three of the four seats allotted to the Union Territory.
The BJP, which won the remaining seat, had already administered the oath to its nominee Sat Sharma last month.
Among the NC MPs, Chowdhary Mohammad Ramzan, a veteran politician and former minister who has served multiple terms in the J&K Assembly, is expected to bring years of legislative experience to the Rajya Sabha.
Sajjad Ahmad Kichloo, also a former minister from Kishtwar known for his organisational work in Chenab Valley, and Shammi Oberoi, the party’s treasurer and a prominent political figure, will join him in representing the region.
This marks the end of the longest stretch in decades when Jammu and Kashmir had no representation in the Upper House.
Before the constitutional changes of 2019, J&K had been represented by several influential leaders, including Ghulam Nabi Azad, former Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha and one of the most prominent parliamentarians from J&K, Shamsher Singh Manhas, BJP leader who completed his term shortly before reorganisation and Fayaz Ahmad Mir, representing the Peoples Democratic Party.
Their departure, coupled with the absence of fresh elections post-reorganisation, had left J&K without any presence in the Rajya Sabha for the past years.
With Monday’s oath-taking ceremony, the Union Territory will resume participation in parliamentary debates, committee work, and policy discussions, restoring a democratic presence that had remained vacant for almost half a decade.
The Winter Session will have 15 sittings, offering the newly elected MPs the first opportunity to represent J&K’s concerns in the Rajya Sabha after a prolonged institutional hiatus.
