Stormy Start to JK Assembly Budget Session

SRINAGAR: The Budget session of Jammu and Kashmir Legislature is expected to begin on a stormy note today with the Opposition parties set to corner the PDP-BJP government over a host of issues, especially the civilian killings during last year's uprising.

The Budget session will begin with the address of Governor NN Vohra to joint sitting of the State legislature today. J&K's finance minister, Dr Haseeb Drabu, will present the third budget of the coalition government on January 9. The over month-long session will end on February 4.

The Leader of the Opposition and former chief minister Omar Abdullah chaired a meeting of his party and other opposition members in Jammu yesterday during which the strategy for the Budget session came up for discussion, sources said.

"We will present a united face in both houses and seek answers from the PDP-BJP government over the spate of civilian killings during last year's unrest in Kashmir and other issues that are aimed at changing the demography of the state," Congress chief, GA Mir said.

The Opposition is expected to take on the embattled coalition government over the civilian killings and the subsequent massive crackdown launched by security forces in the past five months to curb freedom protests, SARFAESI Act and issuing domicile certificates to West Pakistan Refugees.

Senior National Conference leader Ali Muhammad Sagar said the Opposition will demand answers from the government over the use of "wanton force" against protesters which resulted in the killing of at least 95 civilians.

"We will expose the government in the House. In the last three years, we have seen repeated attempts being made to do away with the state’s special status. Besides, we will seek justice for those youth who were killed, maimed and jailed in the past six months,” Sagar said.

More than 15,000 protesters have been injured in the last six months of agitation with the state government slapping the draconian Public Safety Act against more than 500 persons while over 8000 have been arrested in various cases registered against protesters since the killing of Hizb commander Burhan Wani on July 8.

The government is, however, expected to present a united face in both the Houses and a meeting of the legislators of PDP and BJP in this regard has already been chaired by the chief minister Mehbooba Mufti.