A brief, but crucial session of the Jammu & Kashmir legislature is beginning in capital, Srinagar, on Saturday with Opposition parties gearing up to take on PDP-BJP coalition on sensitive issues including consequences of beef ban, sluggish approach in reaching out to victims of 2014 floods, curbs on separatists and rise in incidents of violence along the line of Control (loC) and hinterland.
Officials said three-tier security set-up has been established in the legislative Assembly premises that neighbours the Civil Secretariat and J&K High Court complex.
The week-long session would see the Treasury and Opposition benches face to face for the first time in Kashmir since the coalition Government took over on March 1. The maiden Budget session was held in April in Jammu, but the coalition avoided convening a Summer Session.
Observers say that the upcoming session would be tumultuous in the backdrop of recent controversies including the High Court’s September 8 verdict to ban the sale and possession of beef in Jammu and Kashmir. The verdict evoked strong resentment in the Muslim majority State as also exposed chinks in the PDP-BJP coalition. The situation had turned explosive to the extent that the authorities completely banned internet on eve of Eid-uz-Zuha for three days last week to curb public resentment through social media. The issue was threatening to polarise the State on communal and regional basis, a replica of situation in 2008 summer during the Amarnath land row.
Even as the State Government approached the Supreme Court for a verdict on the controversial issue following separate verdicts from two division benches of J&K High Court in Srinagar and Jammu, all eyes are on the State legislature that has accepted five private members’ Bills for discussion during the autumn session. The apex court would take up the matter on Monday.
The Mufti Government approached the apex court citing conflict in two high court directions. The Jammu bench has asked the state police to ban sale and possession of beef in the purview of section 298 of the Ranbir panel Code while the Srinagar issued notices to the state government asking why the archaic law set up in 1862 be not scrapped. Both directions came while hearing separate PIls on the beef issue.
The Opposition National Conference leaders Muhammad Akbar lone and Ali Muhammad Sagar have jointly moved a private members’ Bill in the lower house while in Upper House its legislators Qaisar jamsheed lone and Dr Bashir Ahmad Veeri have filed separate bills. The CPM legislator MY Tarigami and Awami Ittihad Party leader Engineer Rashid have also filed private members bills on beef ban controversy.
Interestingly, BJP and PDP have diametrically opposite views on the beef ban issue, which are primarily based on the vote bank politics. The BJP leaders have supported beef ban while the PDP opposes government’s intervention in people’s food choices. The BJP has 25 members in the assembly, one of them a Muslim while the PDP has 28 members, all Muslims.
Sources said the coalition partners are strategizing to delay discussion on the bills in both houses of the legislature. They say that the session is effectively for 6 sittings and the coalition partners would place them for discussion on the last day.
The Opposition is also geared up to corner the coalition on “sluggish pace of development”, failure to provide adequate relief to victims of 2014 floods, halt in recruitment process and in accessibility of the government functionaries.
An NC legislator said that there is nothing in Mufti’s kitty to showcase. “We have hundreds of issues of mis-governance to agitate. We will put the entire government on notice”, the legislator said.
However, the coalition seems least bothered. Chief Minister convened a dinner meeting of PDP and BJP legislators at his official residence on Friday evening. He and Deputy Chief Minister Dr Nirmal Singh exuded confidence that the session would conduct constructive business aimed at development and uplift of the State.