The Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly witnessed pandemonium and uproar for the second consecutive day as BJP members demanded an apology from Chief Minister Omar Abdullah over his alleged derogatory remarks.
Order was, however, restored in the House after the Chief Minister expressed regret over his remarks.
Amid noisy protests by BJP members, Omar Abdullah said he did not intend to hurt anyone, even as BJP legislators continued their protest inside the House.
Speaking in the Assembly, the Chief Minister said, “I regret my remarks if they have caused any hurt. My comments were directed at them and not at their family members. However, their field commander (referring to Leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma) went to the extent of dragging my late grandfather into the matter while leaving.”
“Had BJP MLAs given me time on Tuesday evening, things would have been clarified. But the Leader of the Opposition did not give me the chance to explain my stand,” Omar Abdullah said, adding, “I have not dragged members of their families into the controversy, but they dragged my family members, including my grandfather.”
“By boycotting Question Hour, the BJP members have missed the opportunity to raise issues concerning the people,” he said, adding, “Discussions on grants for important departments are underway in the House today, so I do not want the BJP members to miss this opportunity.”
“I am not the Chief Minister of a region or a particular political party. I am the Chief Minister of BJP members as well,” he said.
“I am also concerned about the opposition MLAs, as I have been elected Chief Minister of the entire Union Territory. Today, their questions were missed.”
Earlier, BJP MLAs termed the reported remarks inappropriate and against the dignity of the House. Raising slogans inside the Assembly, the members demanded that the Chief Minister withdraw his statement and tender an apology, leading to a brief walkout.
The BJP legislators later returned to the House and reiterated their demand for an apology. “Let the Chief Minister come forward and say that it was a slip of the tongue, express regret, and apologise,” they said. Despite the noisy scenes and continued protests, the proceedings of the House continued.
As soon as the House assembled in the morning, former minister and BJP MLA Sham Lal Sharma raised the issue of the Chief Minister’s remarks against the opposition. As the Chief Minister was not present in the House at the time, Sham Lal Sharma urged the Speaker to deliver a ruling on Omar Abdullah’s remarks made on Tuesday evening.
When the Speaker declined to speak on behalf of the Chief Minister, BJP members staged a walkout.
Soon after the BJP members walked out, the Chief Minister entered the House and participated in Question Hour. After its conclusion, BJP members re-entered the House and resumed sloganeering.
Interestingly, as soon as BJP members returned to the House, the Chief Minister again left the Assembly. Amid slogan-shouting by BJP members, the Speaker proceeded with the debate on grants for various departments.
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