E-Paper
Officers’ letters against J&K statehood resolution spark row
Several J&K legislators question the law and chief secretaries’ letters, while BJP backs the officers and attacks the Speaker and Omar
Prefer HTon Google
A political row has erupted over J&K’s law and chief secretaries writing to the Speaker, without the chief minister’s knowledge, to oppose the statehood resolution, with the issue reverberating both inside and outside the House on Tuesday.
The issue rocked the House, with many legislators, except those from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), lashing out at the officers for what they described as undermining democracy in the Union territory.
While replying to the debate on the statehood resolution in the assembly, chief minister Omar Abdullah had Monday said that law secretary and chief secretary had opposed the statehood resolution without informing him. “Would you ask them on whose directions these letters were written? I am the law minister, and this opinion has reached you without me knowing,” he said.
Speaking on the issue during zero hour on Tuesday, Congress leader Nizamuddin Bhat said that after the formation of the Union territory, the powers of the government may have been limited, but not those of the assembly. He termed the writing of letters by the bureaucrats as an ‘anomaly’ and ‘unconstitutional’.
“There was a disclosure here that the chief secretary and law secretary had written a letter which virtually challenged the authority of the Speaker and government. I want to understand, as an MLA, can officers act without consulting the government? There is a Council of Ministers, the chief minister, and he has the mandate of the people. He has come through a process which has been completed by the Election Commission under the Constitution. Should the (officer) be allowed to dare to challenge the dignity and authority of this house? Then what for are these demands made here? Why are we discussing here then?” he said.
Ruling National Conference leader and MLA Zadibal Tanvir Sadiq also lashed out at the bureaucracy.
“Next time anyone asks why J&K needs statehood, just read this. Can you imagine a state where senior bureaucrats write to the Speaker seeking to stop a resolution moved by the elected chief minister—without even the knowledge of the concerned minister? This isn’t about one government or one party. It is about who is ultimately accountable to the people. That is precisely why J&K needs its statehood back,” he said on X.
People’s Conference president Sajad Lone said that the collective will of the people of J&K could not be overridden by the chief secretary.
“How can he write a letter? Is he bigger than the people of J&K? More than anything else, the assembly’s powers may have been eroded, but the fact remains that it represents the collective will of the people of J&K,” Lone said while talking to media outside the assembly.
Another NC legislator, Sajad Shafi, said that the chief secretary had no authority to write a letter to the Speaker.
However, the BJP leaders found nothing amiss in law and chief secretaries writing letters to oppose the resolution.
Leader of Opposition, Sunil Sharma, said that the Speaker should step down, while the chief minister should apologise for allowing such a resolution to be discussed and passed.
“Omar Abdullah admitted to the letter(s) by the law secretary and chief secretary. The letters have made clear that the proceedings in the house yesterday (passing of the statehood resolution, with reference to autonomy, and special status resolutions) were unconstitutional,” he said.
