Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Feb 5: The 11th session of 11th Legislative Assembly, which would be last budget session of the present National Conference-Congress coalition Government, was likely to be dominated by political issues rather than development or legislative in view of 2014 being the election year with both Lok Sabha and Assembly elections scheduled in the current year.
This would be the last budget the State Government would be presenting in the Legislature though one more general session of the Legislature would be held in August-September in Srinagar, the summer capital of the State before the Assembly elections, which were scheduled to be held in November-December this year.
Ruling National Conference and Congress were holding their Legislature Party meetings on February 9 a day ahead of the budget session while main Opposition—the People’s Democratic Party was likely to meet on February 8 to chalk out their strategies for the session. The BJP, whose strength in the Assembly has once again gone up from four to 9 with return of five rebel MLAs to its fold, would also meet on February 9.
Official sources admitted that the Government was anticipating massive onslaught of the Opposition including the PDP, BJP, NPP, JSM and CPM in the budget session as all political parties would like to go to Lok Sabha elections in April-May by highlighting the issues of people.
Sources said the coalition partners—NC and Congress were planning to project creation of new administrative units in Jammu and Kashmir as a major “pro-people measure’’ in the Assembly but the Opposition has other ideas.
PDP leader and former Minister Abdul Rehman Veeri said the Government has done discrimination with entire State in the creation of new units.
Army’s closure of 2000 Pathribal encounter case has given the Kashmir based opposition yet another point to score over the Government. However, the National Conference has decided to itself rake up the issue of Pathribal closure first to ensure that the PDP didn’t manage to get maximum political mileage out of it.
“It’s not the issue of the PDP, CPM or PDF alone. We too would raise the issue of Pathribal closure and seek justice for the victims,’’ a senior National Conference leader said.
Jammu based opposition parties including BJP, NPP and JSM were planning to take on the Government on its failure to address the issues of refugees, unemployment, corruption and continued discrimination with Jammu and Ladakh regions.
Congress Deputy Legislature Party leader Mohammad Sharief Niaz, who would virtually officiate as the CLP leader in the absence of ailing Surankote MLA Choudhary Mohammad Aslam, said the support of Congress to National Conference would depend on issue to issue.
“If the Government presents a good budget, announces steps for road connectively and new schemes for water, health, education etc, we will support it. However, if the Government was found lacking on the issues of the people, we will definitely raise our voice in the Assembly,’’ Mr Niaz said.
Sources indicated that the National Conference and Congress could hold joint meeting of their Legislature parties a day ahead of the Assembly session to sort out their issues, if any, and work out a common strategy to counter the all out onslaught by the Opposition in the election year.
BJP Legislature Party leader Ashok Khajuria, who would now be the leader of nine MLAs, fourth largest group in the Assembly after National Conference, PDP and Congress, declared that the BJP was going to take up the issues of discrimination with Jammu and Ladakh regions in all spheres, problems of refugees, abrogation of Article 370, delimitation of Assembly seats and unemployment in the Assembly.
Asserting that the Alliance Government has given lollypop of new administrative units to the people, Mr Khajuria wanted to know how a badly cash starved Government would create such a large number of units when it didn’t have sufficient funds to pay salaries to daily wagers.
NPP Legislature Party leader Harshdev Singh said there was complete collapse of the Government and administrative machinery in Jammu and Kashmir. “The failure of the Government to perform and deliver would be taken up in the House by the NPP members very aggressively,’’ he declared.
Mr Singh said in the last financial year, the Planning Commission had deducted Rs 1500 crores from annual plan, this year the Commission was not releasing Rs 2000 crores. “There is not salary for the employees. The coalition partners are only indulging in shadow boxing over 73rd amendment of the Constitution of India for the past three years. There is complete hotchpotch in the creation of new administrative units. We will take the Government to task,’’ he added.
Jammu State Morcha (JSM) MLA Ashwani Sharma said the Government has failed to address the issues of border people, refugees and rural areas, discrimination is galore. “Though we welcome creation of a tehsil and a CD block in Arnia, yet we can’t ignore genuine problems of the people of Jammu region, who have been suffering at the hands of Government,’’ he added.
Sources said the Government was unlikely to find support from its one time allies—Mohammad Yusuf Tarigami and CPM and Hakim Mohammad Yasin of PDF—both of whom have come together under the banner of Third Front, which has already been launched. They could rake the issues like Pathribal, human rights violations, unemployment etc to take on the Government.
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