The demand for restoring Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood came to the fore on Monday, the first day of the autumn session of the Union Territory Assembly, with the ruling alliance pressing for its immediate reinstatement.
After the House paid obituary tributes to three former ministers, opposition BJP MLAs targeted the government by raising slogans on various public issues. Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather urged BJP members to return to their seats so the legislative agenda could proceed. However, BJP members, holding placards, continued their slogans, creating a chaotic atmosphere.
Amid the din, members of the ruling alliance, the National Conference (NC), Congress, and CPI(M), stood up to demand the immediate restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood. CPI(M) Kulgam MLA M Y Tarigami called on BJP members to also raise the demand for statehood, saying, “Two years have passed, but the promise of statehood has not been fulfilled.”
Senior NC leader and Khanyar MLA Ali Mohammad Sagar led the treasury benches in chanting for statehood restoration and also raised slogans against the BJP. In response, Speaker Rather asked BJP MLAs to return to their seats and warned that action would be taken against them. “Gunda gardi nahi chalegi” (hooliganism will not be tolerated), he said. Congress MLAs joined in, raising slogans against the Centre and chanting, “Vote chor sarkaar ko ek dhakka aur do” (Give the vote-stealing government another push).
As the disturbance continued, Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary said the government was ready to address all questions from the opposition. “But they should ask one by one. We are prepared to respond to all issues. However, it’s clear they are not interested in public welfare; this is their true face, exposed before the people,” the deputy chief minister asserted.
