Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Mar 15: The Opposition MLAs of BJP, NPP and BJP breakaway group today protested in the Legislative Assembly against Pakistan National Assembly’s resolution passed yesterday on 2001 Parliament attack convict Mohammad Afzal Guru and State Government’s failure to pay tributes to martyrs of Wednesday’s fidayeen attack at CRPF’s Bemina camp in Srinagar.
The NPP also vociferously took up the issue of what it called “unconstitutional allocation of funds’’ to National Conference workers in his Ramnagar Assembly segment by the Planning Minister. Trooping into the Well of the House, NPP leader Harshdev Singh tried to march towards the treasury benches but was prevented by the Marshals.
The agitated Opposition members wanted the Legislative Assembly to adopt a Resolution denouncing Pakistan National Assembly’s Resolution condemning execution of Afzal Guru and seeking return of his body to the family members.
However, Deputy Speaker Sartaj Madni, who was in the Chair during the Question Hour, ruled that the Resolution has been passed by Pakistan and “we can’t do anything here’’.
“How the Government can reply to the Pakistan Resolution? This is a non-issue. A second country has adopted the Resolution’’, Mr Madni said as the Opposition members continued to shout slogans protesting the Resolution passed by Pakistan Parliament and the Government failure to visit the CRPF martyrs and pay last respects to them.
As there was no response from the treasury benches to Opposition’s demand for passing a Resolution against Pakistan’s National Assembly and the Government failure to pay last respects to the CRPF martyrs, the Opposition MLAs including those belonging to BJP, BJP’s breakaway group and NPP staged a walk-out in the Assembly shouting slogans like ‘Shaheedon Ka Apmaan Bandh Karo, Bandh Karo’ and ‘Shaheedon Ka Apmaan Naheen Sahega Hindustan’.
The Question Hour remained disrupted for over 25 minutes due to protest by the Opposition members in the House.
As soon as the House assembled for the day, NPP leader and former Minister Harshdev Singh was on his feet and charged the Planning Minister with releasing funds to National Conference workers in his constituency, which he described as “direct interference’’ in his Assembly segment.
“This wouldn’t be tolerated’’, he said.
Joined by two other NPP legislators Balwant Singh Mankotia and Yashpal Kundal, Mr Singh shouting ‘Chor Bazaari Bandh Karo’ and ‘Coalition Government Hai Hai’ trooped into Well of the House. He marched towards the treasury benches and grappled with the marshals, who tried to stop him.
“There is blatant abuse of public money. The public funds are being misused. The Government money is not personal property of the Minister’’, he said.
Mr Singh went atop his desk even as the Deputy Speaker advised him to take up the issue during grants of the Department but the NPP members continued to shout slogans like ‘Sarkari Khazane Ki Loot Khasoot Bandh Karo, Bandh Karo’ and ‘Chor Bazari Bandh Karo, Bandh Karo’.
In the meantime, all four BJP MLAs including Ashok Khajuria, Jugal Kishore, Sukhnandan Choudhary and Sham Choudhary were on their feet and wanted the Assembly to adopt Resolution denouncing Pakistan National Assembly Resolution passed yesterday on Afzal Guru in which they had condemned execution of Guru and sought return of his mortal remains to the family.
“What relation Pakistan has with Afzal Guru? Who they are to adopt resolution on Guru? This is an internal issue of India. Pakistan has no right to interfere in our own affairs’’, BJP MLAs Ashok Khajuria and Jugal Kishore shouted.
Taking the NC-Congress coalition Government to task, the BJP MLAs said while the NC legislators have been addressing Guru as ‘Saheb’, none of them has bothered to visit the CRPF martyrs and pay tributes to them even though they were killed while protecting citizens of the State in a fidayeen attack at Bemina, Srinagar on Wednesday,
“The Government shall feel ashamed for disrespecting the martyrs by not visiting them in Srinagar yesterday’’, the BJP MLAs said while shouting ‘Sharam Karo, Sharam Karo’ and ‘Shaheedon Ka Apmaan Naheen Sahenge, Naheen Sahenge’.
Jugal Kishore said the Government should apologise for not visiting the martyrs and adopt a Resolution condemning Pakistan Assembly.
“What is the difference between our Ministers and Pakistan? Our Ministers have been calling Guru as ‘Saheb’ while Pakistan has adopted a Resolution condemning execution of Guru. This is ridiculous’’, Mr Kishore said.
“They want to break Jammu and Kashmir’’, CPM MLA MY Tarigami remarked.
Hakim Yasin (PDF) said the Pakistan Resolution issue should be raised in the Parliament and not here in the Assembly.
Ashok Khajuria wanted to know why the Government was hesitant in condemning the Pakistan Parliament resolution.
The Deputy Speaker told the BJP MLAs that the Government can’t reply to the Pakistani resolution.
Later, the BJP breakaway group MLAs and NPP also joined the protests against Pakistan Resolution and disrespect shown to the martyrs by the Government.
“Shaheedon Ko Shardanjali Dene Koi Naheen Gaya (none went to pay tributes to the martyrs). This has demoralized the CRPF’’, Harshdev Singh said.
As the Chair repeatedly said that this was not an issue, BJP’s Ashok Khajuria remarked that this was an issue of 121 crore Indians and not “ours only’’.
After agitating on the issue for about 25 minutes, the BJP, BJP breakaway group and NPP MLAs staged a noisy walk-out in the Assembly shouting slogans.
Speaking to reporters outside the Assembly after the walk-out, BJP MLAs Ashok Khajuria and Jugal Kishore said the execution of Afzal Guru was an internal matter of India and Pakistan has no right to interfere in it.
“Pakistan has not only been spreading terrorism in the country but was also provoking the youth to join it’’, they said and warned that the people of India including those of Jammu and Kashmir wouldn’t allow the Pakistani designs to succeed.
Jammu State Morcha (JSM) MLA Ashwani Sharma, who was not present in the Assembly during protests, said outside later that Pakistan should be declared a terrorist country,
“Pakistan Army first took the head of one of our jawan. Now they have interfered into our internal matters by passing a Resolution on Afzal Guru. The Government of India should take stern action against Pakistan’’, Mr Sharma said.
NPP leader Harshdev Singh said all ties should be suspended with Pakistan for its interference into India’s internal affairs. He also charged the Ministers of State Government with interfering into his constituency by releasing funds for the party workers in “blatant abuse of authority’’. He said he would continue to disrupt the House till the Ministers mend their ways.
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