The Omar Abdullah led Jammu and Kashmir government has allowed the introduction of a Private Member’s Bill seeking to restore the original provisions of the Jammu and Kashmir Land Grants Act, 1960, reversing changes made under the 2022 rules. As reported in The New Indian Express, the Bill aims to ‘protect the rights of existing leaseholders’ by allowing renewal of expired leases instead of mandating fresh auctions at market rates. It particularly impacts sectors like tourism, where many hotel leases in Gulmarg have expired. If passed, the legislation would reinstate the earlier system of lease extensions, effectively benefiting current occupants of government land and altering the framework introduced by the 2022 policy.

This new land lease bill has triggered a political row because it quietly rebuilds one of the core economic walls of the pre‑2019 Article 370 regime: a bar on non‑residents accessing prime land in the Valley.

Bill as a De‑facto “Locals Only” Wall

A private member’s bill moved by NC MLA Tanvir Sadiq seeks to repeal the 2022 Land Grants Rules and restore the old J&K Land Grants Act, 1960, including the bar on non‑residents obtaining government land on lease. The 2022 rules had opened doors for non‑resident entities to bid for leases via auction and ended long‑standing renewal rights, which the new bill explicitly aims to undo in the name of “ensuring that the land of J&K remains primarily for the benefit of the people.”

If passed in its present form, the bill would again prevent non‑locals from taking land on lease in key tourism and commercial belts, effectively ring‑fencing hotels, resorts and other high‑value properties for local players. This is why the move is being read by opponents as a piecemeal attempt to restore parts of the old special‑status architecture without formally touching Article 370.

Omar Government’s Role and Political Optics

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah allowed the bill’s introduction and chose not to oppose it, saying the House should first deliberate before the government takes a final view. Formally, the initiative is framed as protecting “lawful leaseholders” and ending the “insecurity” created when LG‑era rules threatened eviction and mandatory auctions of expired leases.

But it seems like the NC government is using its majority to rebuild legal obstacles for outside investment under the guise of correcting LG‑rule “injustices.” Coming after NC’s earlier promise to fight for restoration of special status, critics see this as Omar Abdullah trying to restore Article 370‑style protections through sector‑specific laws instead of a frontal constitutional battle.

Monopoly of Valley elites?

BJP leader and Leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma has accused the bill of being tailored to protect “elite interests,” alleging it will enable re‑leasing large tracts of government land at low rates to the same powerful business families. People’s Conference chief Sajad Lone has similarly warned that the legislation is aimed at the “super elite” sitting on some of Kashmir’s costliest real estate.

Since non‑locals would again be barred from leasing land if the pre‑2019 bar is fully restored, the effective competition for hotels, resorts and tourist venues would be restricted to Kashmiri players already entrenched in the market. This would lock in a monopoly‑style structure, limit new capital inflows and keep control of J&K’s tourism economy in the hands of a small local elite, even as the government publicly pitches the move as protecting small leaseholders and “the people of J&K.”

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