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J&K: Speaker chairs all-party meeting, tells MLAs to raise issues of public concern
Ahead of the Budget session that begins March 3, Rather chaired an all party meet here to ensure a smooth session bereft of frequent disruptions and pandemonium.
Speaker of the J&K legislative assembly, Abdul Rahim Rather, on Thursday, requested political parties to raise issues of public concern to live up to the expectations of their electorates and remain disciplined as well to ensure optimum benefit of the ensuing Budget session.
Ahead of the Budget session that begins March 3, Rather chaired an all party meet here to ensure a smooth session bereft of frequent disruptions and pandemonium.
The five-day long winter session in Srinagar in November last year had witnessed total chaos over restoration of constitutional safeguards, in other words restoration of Article 370.
J&K deputy chief minister and National Conference (NC) leader Surinder Choudhary had moved the resolution, which called upon the “Government of India to initiate dialogue with elected representatives” to bring back the region’s special status, scrapped in 2019.
“The speaker requested the leaders of political parties to raise issues of public importance to live up to expectations of their voters,” said people privy to the meeting.
The speaker expected the elected representatives to act in accordance with the rules and in a disciplined manner, they added.
On BJP MLA from Padder-Nagseni and leader of the opposition, Sunil Sharma’s request of not allowing “any unconstitutional or anti-national activity during the ensuing session”, the speaker said that the House will be run strictly in accordance with the rules.
Earlier, leader of the opposition Sunil Sharma urged speaker Abdul Rahim Rather to not to allow any “unconstitutional or anti-national activity” during the ensuing budget session.
“The BJP high command has already issued clear directions to its MLAs of not allowing any anti-national or unconstitutional activity under the garb of questions, bills or resolutions in the legislative assembly,” said a senior BJP leader, who declined to be named.
The all party meeting was attended by Mubrak Gul (National Conference), Ghulam Ahmed Mir (Congress), Sunil Sharma and Surjeet Singh Salathia (both BJP), Waheed Parra (PDP), MY Tarigami (CPI-M) and Muzaffar Iqbal, (independent).
The MLAs urged the speaker that they be given sufficient time to raise issues of public.
The meeting was attended by Sunil Sharma and Surjit Singh Salathia of the BJP, Mubarak Gul of NC, Ghulam Ahmad Mir of Congress, Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami from the CPI-M), Waheed-ur-Rehman Para of PDP, and independent MLA Muzaffar Iqbal Khan.
