Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, May 16: MLA Udhampur East, Ranbir Singh Pathania, has lodged a note of displeasure before the Speaker of J&K Legislative Assembly, alleging breach of protocol and “systematic fiscal discrimination” against his constituency by the Public Works (R&B) Department.
In a letter addressed to the Speaker, Pathania accused Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary of conducting official spot inspections of developmental works in Udhampur East constituency on April 23 without prior intimation or involvement of the local MLA, terming the move a violation of established parliamentary conventions and institutional propriety.
According to the letter, the Dy CM conducted inspections at accident site in Kaghote under Ramnagar constituency as well as multiple infrastructure projects in Udhampur East, including Majalta bridge, Duddar Nallah Gudar bridge, and the Dhamma to Bunal-Thani road.
“Such ‘commando-style’ executive forays into an Assembly segment, characterized by lack of any prior intimation to or association of the local MLAs and a string of directions and adjectives and invectives which were in totally bad taste as well out of context, time and place were made in front of locals as well as previously called and managed ‘cheer-mongers’, constitute a direct affront to the institutional dignity of the Legislature,” he said and added that conducting an official function in a particular constituency while keeping the elected representatives uninformed from the said event is an ‘antic’ and rather ‘adventure’ which needs to be viewed with a stern eye.
The MLA also flagged what he termed as a pattern of financial discrimination in allocation of development funds under the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) schemes. He claimed that under RIDF XXXII for 2026-27, while neighbouring constituencies in Udhampur district were each allocated Rs 6 crore, Udhampur East was allegedly allotted only Rs 4 crore.
Further, Pathania alleged that under RIDF XXXI, out of 14 projects sanctioned for the entire district, only one project was allocated to Udhampur East, calling it a “statistical anomaly” suggestive of deliberate neglect rather than merit-based allocation. He also accused the administration of delaying the pothole repair scheme in his constituency.
In his submissions to the Speaker, Pathania sought four key interventions, including: Placement of his note on official records of the House; directions to the PWD (R&B) to furnish a comparative statement of allocations under RIDF; issuance of an advisory to the Government to ensure mandatory association of local MLAs in official functions within their constituencies and immediate remedial steps to bridge the reported Rs 2 crore funding gap and expedite delayed approvals.
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