Srinagar: On the first day of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly on Monday, chaos erupted when People’s Democratic Party (PDP) MLA Waheed ur Rehman Para introduced a resolution advocating for the restoration of Article 370. This article, which previously granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir, was abrogated by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government in August 2019, a move that remains contentious.
As Para took the floor to present his resolution, he began by congratulating the newly elected Speaker, Abdul Rahim Rather, on his appointment. “Sir, I congratulate you for being elected as the Speaker of the House. We will learn a lot from your experience. Today, I have a resolution on behalf of my party that I want to submit before you. The resolution calls for the restoration of Article 370,” he stated on the first day of a 5-day long session.
The announcement made by the PDP lawmaker ignited a fierce uproar among the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislators present in the assembly. They immediately demanded that Speaker Rather dismiss the resolution outright. In an attempt to restore order, Rather intervened, stating, “This is my domain; let me examine this and accordingly I will decide on the resolution.” His efforts to calm the situation were met with resistance, as BJP MLAs refused to take their seats and continued to voice their opposition.
Leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma expressed his discontent, asserting, “This is not done on the first day; this kind of stuff should not be introduced in this House.” The Speaker reiterated his position, saying, “I have not seen this copy yet. Let me go through it and examine it. If you (BJP) have decided not to allow this house to run, then I can’t say anything.”
The tumultuous atmosphere persisted as BJP members remained adamant about their stance against Para’s resolution. In a show of support for the PDP MLA, former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti tweeted, “Proud of Waheed Parra for introducing a resolution in JK Assembly opposing the revocation of Article 370 and resolve to restore the special status. God bless you.”
Earlier in the day, Abdul Rahim Rather was unanimously elected as Speaker of the assembly. With a wealth of experience spanning decades, including service under prominent leaders like Sheikh Abdullah, Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah, Rather’s election was met with consensus among opposition parties who chose not to contest the position. Following his election, he was escorted to the Speaker’s chair by both Omar Abdullah and Leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma.
