J&K Assembly to begin 5-day session today

Srinagar (The Uttam Hindu): The five-day long session of Jammu & Kashmir Assembly will begin at 10.30 a.m. on Monday with Lt Governor Manoj Sinha’s address. The ruling National Conference (NC) leaders met under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Sunday to decide the party’s strategy during the Assembly session. A decision was made by NC to field senior party leader and MLA from Chrar-e-Sharief constituency of Budgam district, Abdul Rahim Rather for the Speaker’s post.

The BJP has already announced Sunil Sharma, MLA from Padder-Nagseni constituency of Kishtwar, as Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly and Narinder Singh as the party's candidate for the Deputy Speaker’s post. Congress party MLAs met separately first and then joined the NC leaders to chalk out a common strategy. The NC has decided to bring forth a resolution in the current session of the J&K Assembly for restoration of Article 370, party spokesman and MLA from Zadibal constituency of Srinagar district, Tanvir Sadiq told reporters. Interestingly, while the Congress is committed to supporting the restoration of statehood to J&K, its MLAs are unlikely to support the Article 370 restoration resolution if the NC chooses to bring it up in the session.

NC had made the restoration of statehood and Article 370 its main electoral plank. Although the passing of a resolution for restoration of Article 370 by the J&K legislative Assembly would have no bearing on the supremacy of the Indian Parliament on this issue, the NC strategy is basically meant to mount pressure on the Centre on one hand and prove to the voters on the other hand that the party stands by its electoral promises.

NC has 42 seats, BJP 28 (one seat has fallen vacant because of MLA Devender Singh Rana’s death), Congress has 6, PDP 3, CPI-M, 1, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) 1, Peoples Conference (PC) 1 and Independents 7.