Jammu, February 24 (Scoop News) – Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) today staged walkout from the Legislative Assembly after Speaker Mohammad Akbar Lone disallowed the adjournment motion moved by the party to discuss rampant corruption in the State.
The party had sought adjournment of the normal business of the Assembly so as to discuss corruption because right from the Chief Minister to majority of his Cabinet colleagues have been involved in crime, corruption, nepotism and favourtism and inquiries have already being initiated against them by various committees and commissions.
It is unfortunate that notice, mandatory under the business a rule was sent to the concerned on Thursday, but the party was not allowed to discuss this issue of public importance in the Assembly.
Party observed that woes of common masses of Jammu and Kashmir have been mounting due to rampant corruption in the State. During the last three years residents of Jammu and Kashmir have been struggling to get even basic amenities like drinking water, health, education, road connectivity or power supply but the funds meant for providing these amenities to the people have been brazenly pocketed by the ruling elites.
Government, during the last three years, have been giving excuse of financial crunch in the state for not fulfilling various genuine and deserving demands being projected by the legislators in District Development Board (DDB) meetings or in the Assembly from time to time. Government has been claiming that due to non availability of funds it is not possible to providing basic amenities to the poor people but whopping amount sanctioned to streamline supply of such amenities for the poor people are brazenly siphoned off by the Ministers to construct their palatial houses and to amass huge wealth.
During the last three years, Ministers and their kith and kin have been blatantly looting the state because state government has doled out licensees to them to loot the public exchequer as much as they can.
As Ministers and ruling elites have been looting the money meant to basic facilities to the people, common masses have been bearing brunt of the prevailing rampant corruption in the state.
While as huge chunk of the funds meant to provide basic amenities to the common masses have already been siphoned off by the Ministers and their relatives, the left out funds have been allocated in arbitrary manners especially in the constituencies being represented by the Ministers and legislators of ruling parties. Development in the state has become constituencies specific because funds are development allotted only in the Ministers’ constituencies. Due to rampant corruption and unequal distribution of funds, most parts of the state have been lagging behind in development.
Prevailing corruption in the state has eaten into the vitals of the state and entire system was affected by it. People have to pay bribe for every thing involving government and administration whether it is getting a job, fixing a contract, getting a BPL card or tackling police cases.
Problem of corruption has assumed dimensions of a systemic and moral crisis so PDP had moved the adjournment motion to discuss the same as emergent issue but for the government, corruption is not an important issue.
Government’s decision to reject our adjournment motion authenticates our allegations that corruption has been legalized in the state. Keeping in view the hardship being faced by the people due to rampant corruption in the state, the party has decided to vociferously take up this issue in and outside the Assembly to protect interest of the poor people of the state.