Pandemonium prevailed in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly today over various issues leading to a walkout by the Opposition even as a Congress member threatened to quit the coalition.
Abdul Majid Wani, a Congress member from Doda assembly constituency, threatened to leave the coalition after he was not allowed to raise supplementaries to a question relating to power scenario by the Chair, which took up a discussion on food shortage.
"We are public representatives, we are not bonded labourers. We will leave the coalition if we are not allowed to raise the problems of the people who have chosen us," an agitated Wani said, accusing the government of not taking enough steps to mitigate the problems of the people.
Another Congress MLA Vikar Rasool Wani supported his colleague, prompting speaker Mohammad Akbar Lone to ask, "Are you also going out of the government?"
Rachhpal Singh of National Conference was the first to walk out of the House after he was also not allowed to raise supplementaries to a question.
"I have received phone calls from people of my constituency regarding erratic supply of electricity. If I cannot get the problem solved, what am I doing here?" he remarked and walked off.
The three-member National Panthers Party (NPP) walked out of the House over the "unsatisfactory" answers to question regarding implementation of the decisions of District Development Board from the government.
"We will not tolerate discrimination against Udhampur district. The deputy commissioner of Udhampur is not consulting public representatives in development work. If his removal is not announced in the scheduled cabinet meeting later today, we will stage a 'dharna' inside the House tomorrow," NPP leader Harsh Dev Singh said.
Finance minister Abdul Rahim Rather and CPI-M's MY Tarigami asked the chair to defer the discussion on food shortage, saying it can be held simultaneously with the voting on demands of grants for Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution (CAPD) for the year 2009-2010 are scheduled to come up later in the day.
However, the Opposition PDP, which has moved an adjournment motion on the issue, pressed for initiation of the discussion saying it was an important issue and trooped out of the House.
