NC legislators take on Parra on ‘weak resolution’ issue
Suhail Bhat
SRINAGAR, Nov 8: Ruckus prevailed in Assembly for the third day today as Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) legislators protested over the special status Assembly resolution passed on Wednesday, leading the Speaker to marshal out 12 opposition MLAs and Langate legislator Sheikh Khurshid.
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The day’s proceedings began with BJP legislators wearing tri-colour neck scarves as a symbol of protest against the special status resolution.
Tensions rose when People’s Conference president Sajjad Gani Lone requested a ruling on the resolution he had proposed, along with a group of MLAs, which called for the restoration of Articles 370 and 35A and the reversal of all Constitutional changes introduced after August 5, 2019.
This prompted the BJP camp, including Sunil Sharma, to rise from their seats and begin protesting, chanting, “The Pakistani agenda will not work here.” They also raised slogans against PDP and Peoples Conference.
As the protests grew louder, Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather urged the BJP legislators to maintain order, warning, “I am telling you to behave properly. I will not allow it. Please take your seats.”
Despite this, the BJP legislators continued to disrupt proceedings even as NC legislator Javed Baigh spoke on the motion of thanks for the Lieutenant Governor’s address.
The situation further escalated when AIP MLA Khursheed Ahmad Sheikh, PDP MLA Fayaz Mir, supported by Sajjad Lone and Waheed Para, unfurled a banner that read, “Unconditional restoration of Article 370.”
Sheikh jumped into the Well of the House with the banner and was marshalled out of the Assembly on the directions of the Speaker.
The move of the non-BJP opposition legislators incited a clash between the BJP members and other legislators. The Speaker intervened, stating, “If you want to fight, do it outside. This is not the place for such behaviour.”
With tensions boiling over, some BJP members attempted to storm into the Well of the House. In response, the Speaker ordered the Marshals to remove them. “Remove these people from the House and do not allow anyone to enter the Well.”
The session reached another peak of tension when the National Conference’s Tanveer Sadiq accused five non-NC MLAs of colluding with the BJP, sparking immediate backlash.
Sajjad Lone and Fayaz Mir stood up and refuted Sadiq’s claims. Lone sharply reminded, “Wasn’t Omar Abdullah the Foreign Minister defending human rights violations in Kashmir? It’s acceptable when you present shawls, but you accuse others.”
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