'Attack On Linguistic Identity': PDP Slams J&K Govt's Snub To Urdu In Draft Recruitment Rules

Srinagar: Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has opposed the decision to make Urdu non-mandatory in draft revenue services recruitment, viewing it as an attack on the linguistic and cultural identity of Jammu and Kashmir.

Urdu, which has been a long-standing requisite alongside bachelor’s degree for revenue services in Jammu and Kashmir, has been abolished from the newly amended draft recruitment rules.

The draft recruitment rules for J&K Revenue Service Recruitment Rules for non-gazetted posts were released by the revenue department for inviting objections within fifteen days of its notification. ETV Bharat was the first to report it a day ago.

“This move represents a deliberate attempt to sideline and erase Urdu from the administrative framework of the region, despite its historic and institutional significance. Urdu has for generations been the backbone of revenue records, land documentation, and official communication in Jammu and Kashmir,” said PDP spokesperson, demanding it be restored as the essential criterion for recruitment.

This change in rules follows almost a year after the Bharatiya Janata Party protested and demanded the knowledge of Urdu non-mandatory for Naib Tehsildar posts in the revenue department. The Central Administrative Tribunal had scrapped Urdu as a compulsory language requirement in June 2025.

Condemning the decision to remove Urdu as a mandatory qualification, the PDP said diluting its role is not only culturally insensitive but also administratively unsound.

As per the draft recruitment rules,40 percent of Naib Tehsildar posts will be filled through direct recruitment and the rest through promotion. Patwaris, who are the record keepers of land records, must be filled 100 percent through direct recruitment.

For all these posts,Urdu which was mandatory alongside bachelors degree for the above three posts in the previous Revenue Service Recruitment Rules 2009 has been removed. The previous rules mandated language to be mandatory for promotion to patwari posts.

But the fresh notification has made only ‘graduation degree from recognised university’ as the minimum qualification for these three posts.

The PDP said that removing Urdu from revenue services will create practical challenges in handling existing records and weaken the continuity of governance.

For over a century, Urdu has been the official language of J & K since Dogra ruler Maharaja Pratap Singh. The first official settlement was recorded in Urdu and hence Urdu was compulsory for revenue services.

“Diluting its role is not only culturally insensitive but also administratively unsound. Removing Urdu from revenue services will create practical challenges in handling existing records and weaken the continuity of governance,” it said.

Saying the decision is part of a broader pattern of undermining the linguistic and cultural identity of Jammu and Kashmir, PDP said the move disregards the region’s history and the deep connection people have with the language.

“We urge the government to immediately withdraw this notification and restore Urdu as an essential qualification for revenue posts. Any attempt to diminish the status of Urdu will be firmly opposed,” it added.

Read More:

1. Urdu, Once Compulsory For Key Revenue Posts In Jammu Kashmir, Dropped In Draft Recruitment Rules
2. The Long Walk Home As Kashmir’s Wheels Grind To A Halt