BJP MLAs Clash With MLA Khurshid In J&K Assembly Over Article 370
Jammu & Kashmir: Chaos erupted in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly on Thursday after the opposition objected to Khurshid Ahmad Sheikh, Awami Ittehad Party (AIP) MLA and brother of Engineer Rashid, displaying a banner on Article 370.
At least three MLAs were marshalled out on the directions of Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather before a brawl erupted due to the resistance put up by opposition members.
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Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Sunil Sharma, along with other BJP MLAs, objected to the banner displayed by Khurshid Ahmad Sheikh as the opposition MLA stormed into the house. A scuffle ensued with Khurshid and other MLAs of the Treasury bench.
The J&K assembly on Wednesday passed a resolution seeking a dialogue for the “restoration of special status and constitutional guarantees” to the Union Territory. All parties except the BJP supported the resolution, which was passed via voice vote.
When the assembly commenced in the morning, BJP members protested against the resolution passed on Wednesday. As BJP MLA Sunil Sharma spoke over the resolution, Khurshid jumped into the well of the house, displaying a banner that sought Articles 370 and 35A to be restored.
In response, BJP members also jumped into the well; they snatched the banner and tore it into pieces. Following the clash, the speaker adjourned the proceedings for 15 minutes, but the BJP members continued to protest.
The protest continued even after the House resumed its proceedings, and the speaker requested the opposition members to take their seats.
“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,” Sharma warned.
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The resolution signed by People’s Democratic Party (PDP) leaders, including Khurshid, stated, “The house strongly condemns the unconstitutional and unilateral abrogation of Article 370 and Article 35A, along with the enactment of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, by the Government of India. These actions stripped J-K of its special status and statehood, undermining the foundational guarantees and protections originally according to the region and its people by the Constitution of India.”
The restoration of Article 370 and Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood and implementation of the autonomy resolution was one of the key promises made by the National Conference in its manifesto for the Jammu-Kashmir elections.
