The Jammu and Kashmir Assembly was adjourned till Friday when chaos continued to prevail over the resolution seeking the restoration of Article 370 and 35A, a move that sparked immediate tension in the House.
BJP MLAs clashed with Khursheed Ahmad Sheikh, jailed MP Engineer Rashid’s brother and Awami Ittehad Party (AIP) MLA , who trooped into the Well displaying a banner asking for restoration of Articles 370 and 35A.
There was a scuffle between the BJP MLAs and the marshals, who tried to separate the members involved in the scuffle. Thereafter, Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather ordered eviction of the opposition members who stormed into the Well, protesting against the resolution of the ruling National Conference (NC) seeking restoration of J&K’s Special Status that was abrogated by the Centre in 2019.
The resolution was passed by a voice vote on Wednesday.
Earlier today, uproarious scenes prevailed when the Assembly met in the morning. The BJP members blocked proceedings of the House by raising slogans and protesting against the resolution.
The Speaker first adjourned the House for 15 minutes and later adjourned it till Friday as the BJP members continued to protest in the well.
While BJP MLA and Leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma was speaking on the resolution, AIP lawmaker Sheikh Khursheed rushed to the well, displaying a banner that said that Articles 370 and 35A be restored.
Meanwhile, the PDP, Peoples Conference and AIP described the ruling NC’s resolution as a half-hearted move, and initiated a fresh resolution in the Assembly seeking restoration of Articles 370 and 35A.
The draft resolution signed by six MLAs said “This House unequivocally demands the immediate restoration of Article 370and Article 35A in their original , unaltered form, and calls for the reversal of all changes introduced by the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019”.
As the AIP member waved the banner in the Well, the infuriated BJP members also joined them and snatched the banner, tearing it into pieces.
Amid din, the Speaker adjourned the proceedings for 15 minutes. However, the BJP members continued their protest even after the House was adjourned.
When the House resumed its proceedings, the BJP members continued to protest, even as the Speaker requested the opposition members to take their seats.
“You are Leader of Opposition, we will hear you”, the Speaker told Sharma. However, when the protest continued, he said, “You are not above rules. See the rules. I am very closely watching the activities of some members. Don’t force me to do what I don’t want to do” he warned.
Sharma, however, said, “I want the National Conference’s drama of special status to end”, which infuriated the treasury benches leading to protests.
J&K Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary had moved the resolution which said, “That this legislative assembly reaffirms the importance of the Special Status and Constitutional guarantees, which safeguarded the identity, culture and rights of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, and expresses concern over their unilateral removal.