J&K Assembly witnesses uproar for 3rd day in a row

Srinagar: Ruckus prevailed in the Jammu and KashmirAssembly for the third day on Friday as BJP members protested over the special status resolution, leading the speaker to marshal out 12 Opposition MLAs and Langate legislator Sheikh Khurshid.

As the House met for the day, BJP MLAs raised slogans like ‘Pakistani agenda nahi chalega’.

BJP MLAs also jumped into the well of the House following which Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather directed that they be marshalled out.

Soon after they were evicted, 11 other BJP MLAs walked out of the House in protest.

The House has been witnessing uproar from the last two days as BJP MLAs protested vociferously after the passage of the resolution.

Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary had moved the resolution on Wednesday that said: “This Legislative Assembly reaffirms the importance of the special status and constitutional guarantees, which safeguarded the identity, culture and rights of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, and expresses concern over their unilateral removal.”

The Assembly also witnessed heated exchanges between PDP legislators and National Conference (NC) members over the phrasing of the resolution passed in the House. PDP MLA from Pulwama Waheed Para said his party supported the resolution brought by the ruling NC on Wednesday but wanted to ensure that people outside do not feel there was a

compromise in it.

“The onus of acceptance and tolerance lies on the majority. We are recording the erosion of our legacy, the legacy of (NC founder) Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah. Our concern is that it is a historic session. People should not feel that there was a compromise or betrayal,” he said.

Notably, Para had to protest to get time from the Assembly Speaker to allow him to speak on the motion of thanks to the Lieutenant Governor’s address.

Para also objected to some NC members making “degrading” references to PDP founder Mufti Mohammad Sayeed while speaking on the motion of thanks in the House.

“They called Jamaat-e-Islami members traitors and spoke ill about Mufti Mohammad Sayeed. If we talk of betrayal, it was started by Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah. He was the first one to compromise,” Para said.

The comments of the PDP leader prompted protests from the treasury benches.