The Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly on Wednesday witnessed noisy scenes as BJP legislators staged a walkout, demanding an apology from Chief Minister Omar Abdullah during Question Hour in the ongoing Budget Session.
The uproar stemmed from remarks made by the Chief Minister on Tuesday while replying to the debate on the union Territory’s budget. Omar had defended the budget and criticised the Indo-US trade deal, but certain comments drew objections from BJP MLAs, who raised slogans demanding an apology, terming the remarks “unparliamentary.”
On Wednesday, as proceedings resumed at 10 am, BJP members again objected to the Chief Minister’s statements. Since Omar Abdullah was absent from the House, the MLAs requested the Speaker to ensure that the Chief Minister either clarify whether his remarks were parliamentary or apologize.
As soon as the assembly proceedings resumed this morning at 10 am, BJP MLAs objected to the remarks made by the Chief Minister. BJP MLAs requested the Speaker to ensure that the Chief Minister either clarify whether his remarks were parliamentary or unparliamentary and apologize.
Amid Chief Minister Omar Abdullah’s absence from the House, Health Minister Sakina Itoo stated that the BJP has also made comments about National Conference MLAs and ministers during assembly proceedings that triggered a heated exchange of words between the Health Minister and BJP MLAs.
Amid the uproar, the Health Minister said the BJP should apologize to the 50 children whose futures they ruined. She said the BJP closed a medical college (Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Medical Institution) on a Hindu-Muslim issue. Following this, the Speaker of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly, Abdul Rahim Rather, said that what happened on Tuesday was unfortunate.
Leader of the Opposition, Sunil Sharma, stated that the words used by the Chief Minister were of the first kind in the history of the Legislative Assembly. He demanded an assurance from the Speaker that the Chief Minister should address the House on his remark. Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary told the Speaker that the words can be expunged from the record.
Following this, BJP MLAs walked out of the House amidst “anti-government” slogans. Later speaking to the media outside the House, BJP MLAs, Sham Lal Sharma and Ranbir Pathania said that the opposition is only demanding an apology from the Chief Minister or he justify whatever he said in the House.
They said that they have held a detailed discussion with the Speaker on the issue. They termed the Omar Abdullah-led government as ‘anti-people’. Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather told BJP MLAs that they have already closed the matter by staging a walkout. The BJP legislators, however, created uproar in the House and continued disrupting the House proceedings.
