Uproar in J&K Assembly over beef ban bill; Engineer Rashid, Congress MLAs stage walk-out

Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir Assembly witnessed a major uproar today during a discussion on several bills, which led to independent MLA Engineer Rashid and Congress MLAs staging a walk-out from the house.

Rashid was seen rising from his seating shout slogans even as Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh was addressing the house.

Rashid said the ruling PDP-BJP coalition government was deliberately deferring the debate on his bill seeking scrapping of a law on beef ban.

He said he was left with no option but to walk-out as his repeated attempts to raise the issue had gone unheard in the assembly.

"In the last session, we had introduced a bill to end the beef ban. Even last time, they did not allow the bill to be taken up for discussion, and even this time they were avoiding it. If they do not want the bill, then they should reject it. Let the government oppose it, but the PDP knows what it would lead to," Rashid told reporters here

"I am not for any communal agenda, everyone has right to live, right to eat, right to pray. This is our fundamental right, and when they did answer these things, we had to walk-out," he added.

Congress MLAs too staged a walk-out and resorted to sloganeering over rejection of their bill on reservation in promotions.

"I had submitted a bill on reservation in promotions. There was an amendment in the Constitution, and I sought implementation of those amendments. Act of reservation 2004 gives reservations in promotions. I gave a bill to restore it. My bill was rejected without any explanation. If the bill is against the territorial integrity of the state and the country, then you reject it, but this is a legitimate bill," Congress MLA Ring Zing Jora told media here.

" Assembly is the temple of democracy and the Speaker is the priest. If he is biased against some particular section, then, we have no option other than to shout against him," he added.