Jammu and Kashmir Assembly: Stormy start of Budget Session, national anthem disrespected by protests

The Budget Session of Jammu and Kashmir Assembly saw a stormy start as opposition held protests against the PDP-BJP government on Monday.

The ruckus made the Assembly apparently dysfunctional with continuous sloganeering even when the national anthem was being played, with Governor N N Vohra cutting short his address to both houses of the legislature and leaving amid the pandemonium.

As the Governor entered Central Hall of the Legislature, opposition members from National Conference, Congress, CPI(M) and other Kashmir-based Independent MLAs stood up carrying placards and held protests against the government for its alleged failure on all fronts.

The opposition members attempted to disrupt Governor’s address thrice.

During his speech, the Governor prayed for peace and normalcy in the New Year and hoped for brotherhood and amity in each of the three regions of Jammu and Kashmir.

“I will conclude by reiterating my belief that Jammu and Kashmir has a very high potential of being developed as one the leading states. To achieve our goal we need to resolve all disagreements and strive hard to put the state on the path of development,” he said.

Reiterating the importance of resuming Indo-Pak dialogue, he said, “It is important that the Indo-Pak dialogue resumes early. It is imperative that we work towards the resolution of conflicts first within our civil society and then in the polity”.

Owing to the pandemonium, the Governor had to cut short his speech. BJP demanded an apology from opposition included Congress and NC in Jammu and Kashmir and asked Congress Chief Sonia Gandhi and Vice President Rahul Gandhi to clarify their stand on disrespect to the national anthem by its members.

With Inputs from PTI