Private Members' Bills To Take Center Stage In J&K Assembly's Budget Session

(MENAFN- Kashmir Observer) Srinagar- As the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly gears up for its Budget Session starting March 3, several private member bills are set to be tabled. Among the most debated proposals is the call for declaring Jammu and Kashmir a dry state, with at least three legislators advocating for a complete ban on alcohol in the Union Territory.

People's Democratic Party (PDP) MLA from Kupwara Mir Mohammad Fayaz, Awami Ittehad Party (AIP) legislator from Langate Sheikh Khursheed Ahmad and ruling National Conference (NC) MLA from Lal Chowk Ahsan Pardesi have submitted separate private members' bills for a ban on alcohol in Jammu and Kashmir.

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Meanwhile, PDP legislators have also pushed for bills seeking the regularisation of property rights for residents on public land and the absorption of ad hoc, daily wagers, and other temporary workers.

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MLA Pulwama Waheed-ur-Rehman Parra moved a private member bill titled“The Jammu and Kashmir (Regularization and Recognition of Property Rights of Residents in Public Land) Bill, 2025”.

The bill seeks to confer the ownership rights on the people who have been living on the state land for the last two decades.

Read Also Don't Allow Any Unconstitutional, Anti-National Resolution: BJP To Speaker In All-Party Meet Ahead Of Budget Session, NC To Hold Legislative Party Meeting On March 2

The other two bills pertain to the regularization of daily wagers and liquor ban.

“During my tenure, I had introduced an SRO for the regularization of thousands of daily wagers, but we could not move ahead as the government collapsed. We have now moved a bill to ensure their regularization”, Mehbooba Mufti said.

Regarding the property rights bill, Mehbooba said,“The poor who live on Kahcharai land, as well as the schools built on such land, should be granted ownership rights”, she said.

In a separate legislative move, National Conference MLA from Bijbehara, Dr. B.A. Veeri, has proposed a bill to rationalize reservation, capping quotas at 40% for reserved categories and 60% for open merit. The proposal, closely aligned with demands from the Open Merit Students Association (OMSA), has already gained traction on social media.

In a separate legislative move, National Conference MLA from Bijbehara has proposed a bill for the upcoming session of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly to rationalize reservation, capping quotas at 40% for reserved categories and 60% for open merit.

MLA Veeri reposted a social media post on X that read,“We are highly thankful to @DrVeeri for this approach! Need all members' support for this Bill #reservationjk.”

Reacting to this development, the Open Merit Students Association J&K stated in a social media post,“Our bill has been taken to the floor by some MLAs from both the ruling and opposition parties, despite stiff resistance from their high commands. We are grateful to them for taking a stand. We urge the legislators to stand firmly behind and support the people's bill by raising their voices on this crucial governance issue-or be prepared to face the people's wrath in any future electoral exercise.”

Veeri was quoted by several media organizations as saying that the bill was intended to safeguard merit.

In addition to the reservation bill, the NC MLA has also proposed legislation to protect the Karewas from rampant soil extraction and to prohibit mining in Karewa zones, which are“ecologically, geologically, and archaeologically significant.”

Notably, PDP president Mehbooba Mufti on Thursday wrote to Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, seeking his support for three private member bills to be tabled by legislators from her party in the upcoming Budget Session of the assembly.

Mehbooba wrote identical letters to Leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma of the BJP, Congress state chief Tariq Hameed Karra, CPI(M) leader MY Tarigami and People's Conference chairman Sajjad Gani Lone, a PDP leader said.

On February 23, Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather said it was improper to give unwarranted publicity to the notices of questions, bills, resolutions and other similar matters connected with the business of the House and asked members to desist from breach of privilege.

In her one-page letter to the chief minister, Mehbooba said,“I write to you at a time when the people of Jammu and Kashmir continue to face unprecedented challenges, particularly since the developments of 2019. The last few years have been immensely difficult for our people, who have had to endure political uncertainty, economic stagnation, and social distress.”

“Unfortunately, these hardships persist, and the collective voice of our people demands attention and meaningful action. While we may differ in political ideology and approach, I firmly believe that there are issues of common interest that transcend partisan lines,” she added.

A former chief minister of the erstwhile state, Mehbooba said the welfare of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, the preservation of their rights and the protection of their unique identity were matters that concerned everyone.

“In such testing times, it is imperative that we rise above our differences and come together for the greater good,” she said, inviting Abdullah's attention to the three“crucial bills”.

“These bills seek to address urgent concerns affecting the daily lives of our people and uphold their aspirations. The details of these legislative proposals have been shared with the office of the speaker,” Mehbooba said.

The PDP supremo expressed hope that Abdullah would consider these bills not merely as initiatives of one party but steps towards addressing the people's collective grievances.

“I assure you that our party would extend full political and legislative support to the government in any of its initiatives on these subjects of common and immediate concern, should it introduce such legislation,” she said, expressing hope for a“positive response” to move forward together.

“Our political paths may differ but the challenges faced by our people are shared, and so must be our resolve to address them,” she added.

Will Not Allow Any Anti-National, Unconstitutional Bill: LOP

As the nearly month-long Jammu and Kashmir budget session of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly is scheduled to begin from March 3, Leader of the Opposition (LoP), Sunil Sharma on Thursday said that they will not allow any anti-national or unconstitutional bill to be tabled in the House.

“Our stand is clear in the upcoming assembly session. We will not allow any unconstitutional and anti-national bill to be introduced in the budget session,” Sunil Sharma told reporters before attending the All Party Meeting called by the Speaker J&K Assembly, Abdul Rahim Rather here at the Civil Secretariat.

The budget session will be held in two phases from March 3 to 25 and April 7 to 11.

Sunil Kumar Sharma and Surjit Singh Salathia from BJP, Ali Mohammad Sagar and Mubarak Gul from the ruling National Conference, CPI (M) MLA Mohammad Yusuf Tarigami, Congress MLA Ghulam Ahmed Mir, People's Conference's Sajjad Gani Lone, PDP's Wahidul Rehman Parra and Independent MLA Muzaffar Khan attended the meeting.

“We have also objected to the way some MLAs have brought the private member bills into the public domain before bringing them to the notice of the Speaker,” said the LoP.

Meanwhile, Congress leader Ghulam Ahmad Mir said that all party meetings strengthen mutual relations, leading to coordination among the political parties.

CPI (M) MLA Mohammad Yusuf Tarigami, said,“Opposition parties were invited to attend the meeting and as far as the concerns of the common people who have elected their representatives, have hopes that their issues will be raised and addressed by the government in an upcoming Assembly session.”

The first session of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir Assembly was held in November last year in Srinagar while the second assembly and first budget session of the first assembly of the Union Territory will begin on March 3 in Jammu.

The last budget of Rs 80,313 crore for the financial year 2018-19 in the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir was presented by the then Finance Minister Dr. Haseeb Drabu on January 11, 2018.

In June 2018, the PDP-BJP coalition government led by Mehbooba Mufti collapsed after the BJP withdrew support from the alliance, and the assembly was dissolved in November 2018.

The then State Administrative Council (SAC) headed by the then Governor Satya Pal Malik adopted a budget of Rs 88,911 crore for 2019-2020 on December 15, 2018.

Subsequently, the budgets of the Union Territory including 2020-21, 2021-22, 2022-23, 2023-24, and 2024-25 were presented and passed by the Parliament in the absence of the Legislative Assembly in Jammu and Kashmir.

The budget of Rs 1,18,728 crore of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir for the current financial year 2024-25 was presented in Parliament by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on July 23, 2024.

The budget of Jammu and Kashmir for 2023-24 was Rs 1,18,500 crore.

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