CM hits back at BJP’s ‘non-serious’ jibe over the 7-day session; alleges critics driven by denied jobs and ‘envelopes’ from Gupkar Road agencies; assures caution on recruitment; LoP Sunil Sharma wants the session extended to 30 days
Srinagar, Sep 15 (BuzzBytes): “I have faith in my MLAs. I am not afraid that they will move,” Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said on Tuesday, asserting full confidence in his legislators while hitting back at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over its criticism of the seven-day Assembly session and taking a dig at his critics.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an event at SKICC here, the Chief Minister, as reported by , said he was not worried about his MLAs switching sides.
On the BJP’s criticism of the seven-day Assembly session, Omar questioned how the government could be accused of being “non-serious” when the House was functioning throughout the day. “What is non-serious about it? It’s a seven-day session. It would have been non-serious if we had followed the path shown by the BJP, where they have held one- or two-day sessions in their states,” he said.
Abdullah said the government was regularly present in the Assembly and participating in its proceedings. “We sit in the Assembly from morning and leave in the evening. There is no such day when we ourselves are not present in the Assembly,” he said.
Taking a swipe at the BJP, the Chief Minister said its members were “hardly seen in Parliament” and questioned their right to accuse the J&K government of being non-serious. “These people never come to Parliament. They are never seen in Parliament,” he said. “Look at Parliament. Look at who sits for how long. Then you tell me who is taking it seriously and who is not.”
The CM further said he would not respond to every statement made by his political opponents. “I would respond selectively rather than engage in a daily war of words,” he said. “Don’t expect me to answer every statement. You said it today; now I will react to the next statement after a month. I will react to one of their statements every month. Not every day.”
Asked about recruitment in government, the Chief Minister said his administration was proceeding cautiously to avoid complaints over selection procedures. “We can be hasty. But we have often seen that the result of hastiness is not good,” he said, adding that he had asked recruiting agencies to ensure transparency and follow due procedure even if the process took longer than two months. “Even if it takes more than two months, transparency should be maintained. Procedures should be followed so that there is no complaint about the process tomorrow,” he said.
Taking a dig at his critics, Omar said some commentators had turned against his government after failing to receive government jobs or accommodation. “I didn’t give them a job in my government, and now they start writing. Here they are, commentators who don’t get a government house, so they use social media against the government,” he said. “If I had given them a flat in Jawahar Nagar, would they have dared to write like this?” the CM asked, adding that he was not bothered by such “selfishness”.
The Chief Minister, without naming anyone, went further, saying he knew the identity of those fuelling speculation about his government’s stability, alleging they were a couple of people who collected “envelopes” from the offices of agencies on Gupkar Road and had approached him for adjustment immediately after his government was formed. “These people who are in between… I know who they are. These are a couple of people who take their envelopes from the offices of the agencies of Gupkar Road. These are the same people who came to my office as soon as the government was formed to adjust me somewhere,” he said. “Now, to keep their respect, I do not open my mouth. But you… remove the remote. They come to my office. You will find the names of all these people who are counting MLAs today. Because I did not give them a job in my government, now they start writing,” he said.
In a preview of the fireworks expected once the session opens, Leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma had earlier accused the government of limiting the session to just five effective sittings. “By limiting the J&K Assembly session to just five effective sittings, the government is making a mockery of the expectations of the people,” Sharma said. He appealed to the Speaker to reconsider the schedule and extend the proceedings by 30 days, saying the Assembly was the only platform through which the concerns of the people could be raised. “As the main opposition party, we are taking this very seriously because we are very serious about the issues of the people,” he said—(BuzzBytes)
