Context: People, as well as investors outside Jammu and Kashmir, can now purchase land in the Union Territory (UT) as the Centre has notified new land laws for the region.
Amendments to J&K Development Act

• The Act allowed Indian citizens as well as investors outside the Union Territory (UT) to purchase land in the region.
• It ended the exclusive rights of locals over the land granted under now abrogated Article 370.
• The term “being permanent resident of the State” as a criterion has been “omitted”.
• Investors were unable to purchase land in J&K prior to August 5, 2019 (abrogation of Article 370).
• It allowed transfer of land in favour of a person or an institution for the purpose of promotion of healthcare or senior secondary or higher or specialized education in J&K.

According to “The Jammu & Kashmir Land Revenue Act, Samvat, 1996”; only agriculturists of J&K can purchase agricultural land.

• No sale, gift, exchange, or mortgage of the land shall be valid in favour of a person who is not an agriculturist.
• An army officer (not below the rank of Corps Commander) can declare an area as “Strategic Area” within a local area.
• Only for direct operational and training requirements of the armed forces.

Criticisms of the move

• Political parties have opposed the move citing the sale of the state.
• With these new laws in place, tokenism of the domicile certificate has been done away with, as purchasing non-agricultural land has been made easier.

Why not in Northeast?

• A major part of the Northeast still continues to be under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.
• The Sixth Schedule consists of provisions for the administration of tribal areas in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram under Article 244 of the Indian Constitution.
• The Schedule allows Autonomous District Councils (ADCs) to make laws forbidding outsiders and non-tribal people from buying tribal land.
• Articles 371A for Nagaland and Article 371G for Mizoram have given special powers to reject any new Acts of Parliament unless accepted through a resolution passed by the state’s legislative assembly.
• Also, ownership rights of land are reserved for indigenous people and there are Inner Line Permit (ILP) provisions in many states of the region.
• ILP is applicable in Mizoram, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh under the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation of 1873.

There are three Autonomous Councils under Sixth Schedule:

• Bodoland Territorial Council
• Dima Hasao Autonomous District Council
• Karbi Anglong Autonomous District Council

Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019
The Act reorganises the state of Jammu and Kashmir into

• (i) Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir with a legislature
• (ii) Union Territory of Ladakh without a legislature
• The Act provides for a Legislative Assembly for the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir with total number of seats in the Assembly 107.
• Both the UTs are to be administered by the President, through a Lieutenant Governor appointed by him.