Update: J&K Assembly Passes the Ease of Doing Business Bill — What Passed, Who Said What, What Is Still Pending

The story so far

JammuBeat has tracked this reform since August, when an Ease of Doing Business ordinance was explained here. The Bill was then cleared by the Cabinet, headed to the Assembly, and on 28 September introduced as the Jammu and Kashmir Ease of Doing Business Bill, 2026. Our last piece said it was written before the outcome of the vote was known. That outcome is what has changed.

What's new: the Bill passed on 29 September

The Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly passed the Bill on 29 September 2026, according to ThePrint. Its stated aim, as reported, is to replace "permission-based control with rule-based governance", to foster ease of doing business and ease of living, generate employment and attract investment.

The reported provisions in the passed version include:

• Deemed approval. If a permission is not granted within the stipulated time, it is treated as granted.
• Third-party certification. The government retained this mechanism.
• Government takeover. Projects that violate the rules can be taken over by the government.

The timelines (3, 30 and 45 working days for in-principle approval), the three-year inspection holiday and the domicile-hiring enabling clause were described in our 29 September report on the Bill as introduced. The sources we fetched for this update do not say whether any of those clauses were amended during passage, so we have not restated them as final.

What the positions are

The government's side. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who piloted the Bill, was quoted by ThePrint as saying: "I am an out-and-out capitalist", that "permissions will be granted automatically", and that "sitting on decisions is a form of corruption".

Supporters in the House. ThePrint reports that NC MLA Farooq Shah and BJP MLA PK Gupta backed the measure.

A critic. CPI(M) MLA M Y Tarigami said such moves "have led to making rich people richer while there is no increase in employment", per ThePrint. We have not found the full text of his remarks, and the sources do not say how the government responded to that specific point.

Traders. The Kashmir Traders and Manufacturers Federation (KTMF) welcomed the Bill. Its president, Mohammad Yaseen Khan, called it "an important step towards simplifying business regulations" and said business owners have faced "complicated documentation, multiple permissions, repeated inspections and delays", according to Greater Kashmir. KTMF urged departments to implement the law "in their true spirit, with clear guidelines, effective monitoring and accountability", and said traders should not face "unnecessary harassment, repetitive inspections or avoidable bureaucratic delays".

What is still open

• Assent and notification. The sources we fetched do not mention assent or the date the law comes into force. Until it is notified, current rules apply.
• Rules and guidelines. Neither source describes the rules that would operationalise the Bill. KTMF's own statement is a call for clear guidelines.
• The domicile-hiring clause. As introduced, it was a power to issue an order, with no percentage set. Nothing reported so far says an order has been issued.

What it means for a young founder or jobseeker

The test is practical: does a permission actually arrive on time, and does the portal show it? If you are planning a business, keep applying under today's process and watch for the official notification and rules. If you are job hunting, the question to follow is whether any hiring order is ever issued, and at what percentage.

Sources:

• ThePrint — J&K Assembly passes Ease of Business Bill; Omar says he is out-and-out capitalist
• Greater Kashmir — KTMF welcomes Ease of Doing Business Bill