President Ram Nath Kovind gave assent to a legislation for bifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir, and two Union Territories — Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh — will come into existence on October 31. The President has given assent to the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill, 2019, “In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (a) of section 2 of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 (34 of 2019), the Central Government hereby appoints the 31st day of October, 2019, the birth anniversary of Sardar Patel as the appointed day for the purposes of the said Act”.

According to the legislation, the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir will have a legislature like Puducherry and Ladakh will be a UT like Chandigarh, without legislature. In both the Union Territories, key subjects such as law and order will be with the Centre.

The UT of Jammu and Kashmir will have a Lieutenant Governor and the maximum strength of its assembly will be of 107 which will be enhanced to 114 after a delimitation exercise. Twenty-four seats of the Assembly will continue to remain vacant as they fall under Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

The UT of Ladakh will have Kargil and Leh districts. The Act said Jammu and Kashmir UT will have reservation in the assembly seats.

The Lieutenant Governor of the successor UT of J-K may nominate two members to the Legislative Assembly to give representation to women, if in his opinion, women are “not adequately” represented in the Legislative Assembly.