Chairman reschedules meeting to Aug 6
*Say they were not consulted before plan finalization
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, July 31: After Rajouri, the District Development Council (DDC) meeting in Reasi also witnessed stormy scenes followed by walkout by two BJP MLAs and DDC members over formulation of plan for current financial year without their consultations forcing the Chairman to reschedule the meeting to August 6 and directive to the officers to re-draft the plan after taking all members on board.
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BJP MLA from Katra Vaishnodevi Baldev Raj Sharma and Kuldeep Dubey, MLA Reasi besides some of the party’s DDC Members walked out of the meeting even as the DDC is headed by BJP leader Sarf Singh Nag who was left high and dry following protests not only from the BJP but also from others including NC’s Jagjivan Lal, who too walked-out of the meeting for not being consulted in finalization of the plan.
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Some of the BJP members were of the view that works proposed by them in their areas were not included in the plan by the officers who instead incorporated works either on their own or at the behest of “someone else’’.
DDC Reasi has three former Ministers as DDC members including Jagjivan Lal, Aijaz Khan and Abdul Ghani Malik. Three MLAs of the districts including Baldev Sharma and Kuldeep Dubey (both BJP) and Khurshid Ahmed (NC) are members of the DDC by virtue of being legislators of Reasi district.
Baldev Sharma told the Excelsior that he supported his party colleague Kuldeep Dubey who resented exclusion of works recommended for execution in the plan. “Both of us walked-out of the meeting,’’ he said.
Dubey said the plan should be given to them at least four days prior to the meeting so that they can study and debate it.
“They submitted the plan same day and wanted us to pass. How it can be done?’’ he asked. Further, he said, some works approved by the Gram Sabha had been changed.
NC DDC Member and former Minister Jagjivan Lal questioned protocol of MLAs who were attending the meeting. He too lamented that the plan was brought in the meeting without consulting the members and therefore, it was not approved.
“I said the plan should be formulated in consultations with MLAs and DDC Members. I walked out. Other members also walked-out of the meeting,’’ Lal said.
Asserting that he didn’t challenge presence of MLAs in the DDC meeting, Lal said he just wanted to know if their protocol is above the DDC Chairman, how they are sitting in the meeting.
DDC Reasi Chairman Sarf Singh Nag, who belongs to the BJP, told media persons that the members objected to the exercise and wanted that the plan should be approved after holding detailed discussions.
“We have deferred the plan meeting and re-scheduled it for August 6. In the meantime, the officers have been asked to prepare fresh plan in consultations with the members,’’ Nag said.
Aijaz Khan, DDC Member and former Minister regretted that one quarter of the financial year has already passed and the plan hasn’t been approved so far. “When it will be approved and when the works will be taken up’’? he asked.
The DDCs will be completing their five-year term in January next year.
BJP has been ruling six out of 10 DDCs in the Jammu region including Jammu, Samba, Kathua, Udhampur, Reasi and Doda districts. Ruling National Conference is in power in three DDCs—Kishtwar, Ramban and Rajouri while an Independent heads the Poonch DDC.
Few days back, National Conference and Congress MLAs and DDC members besides an Independent legislator had heated exchanges in Rajouri DDC meeting. However, the District Capex Budget was passed in that meeting.
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