New Delhi, March 22 : Opposition members in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday demanded early elections in Jammu and Kashmir as the House took up discussion on The Jammu and Kashmir Appropriation Bill, 2022. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman moved the Bill in the House in the afternoon for consideration and return. The reply by the minister is scheduled on Wednesday. Initiating the discussion, Congress MP Vivek Tankha alleged that the economic activity in the state is paralysed. He said that aspirations of the people of Jammu and Kashmir should be heard before deciding Budget for the on Territory. “The budget doesn’t reflect the pain and agony of the people of J&K. The allocation has declined in various sectors including health and power,” he said. There is a complete administrative paralysis, Tankha added. He said that the carpets and shawls industries in the state are dying as the artisans don’t get incentives. “This is happening because the meeting of minds to decide budget priorities is absent in the House. There is no Assembly in the state. And their representatives are absent here,” said Tankha adding “It’s time we restored democracy in Kashmir.” Criticised the Opposition for opposing the Kashmir Files, BJP MP Anil Jain said that what has been shown in the film is only a tip of the iceberg. AITC leader Nadimul Haque said that it would have been better, had the Budget been discussed in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly. Samajwadi Party senior leader Ramgopal Yadav said that the speeches of the ruling party are far more dangerous than the movie Kashmir Files. “Those who oppose Kashmir Files, I want to ask them why to oppose the film, the speeches of the ruling party leaders are even more dangerous than Kashmir Files,” he said. Questioning the government, Yadav asked as to how many Kashmiri pandits have been rehabilitated in Jammu and Kashmir since it came to power at the Centre. “Where is the representation of Kashmir in the Upper House,” Ramgopal said asking what stops the government to conduct polls in the State once the delimitation process has been completed in the state. Conduct polls in the state so that the budget doesn’t need to be discussed in Parliament, added the SP leader. RJD leader Prof Manoj Jha said that the absence of trust of the people in Jammu and Kashmir is concerning. “The mainstream has been de-legitimised in the state and then murdered,” said Jha attacking the government. Recalling his experience, the RJD leader alleged that the digital mode of education was collapsed in the state during the pandemic. Priyanka Chaturvedi of the Shiva Sena alleged that the budget doesn’t carry any provision for Kashmiri Pandit comm ty. “Wounds can be scratched but it is the responsibility of the government to heal them,” Chaturvedi said targeting the government over the alleged politics being played over Kashmir Files. “It is unfortunate that the ruling party is engaged in politics over the plight of Kashmiri Pandits,” she said. Giving example of a letter by MoS Home Affairs Nityanand Rai written to her, Priyanka Chaturvedi objected to the term ‘migrants’ allegedly used for Kashmiri Pandits in the letter. Responding to the allegations levelled by the Opposition members over Kashmir Files, Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said that “the film has disclosed the wrongdoings of some parties and families.” “Are human rights only for terrorists and separatists. Are human rights not for the armed forces. The government has ensured progress and prosperity of the people in the the state. We have initiated a political process in the state. In every other Act of Parliament we used to add ‘except Jammu and Kashmir’. The government has removed the ‘beemari’ of using this terms in all legislations of Parliament,” the minister said. Naqvi said that the terrorists are eliminated whenever they try to endanger the lives of the people in the state and the government has been able to create a constructive atmosphere in the state. “What message do we want to give if we say in Parliament that human rights are violated in Jammu and Kashmir,” he asked. ASU SHK2032
