Srinagar Oct 2 (Scoop News) – Peoples Democratic Party today reiterated that the current crisis created by the government had seriously eroded the credibility of democratic institutions in the state and the state legislature was no exception.
This was stated by the party president Mehbooba Mufti in her interaction with M Y Tarigami MLA and CPM leader who called on her on behalf of the business advisory committee of the legislative Assembly. The Committee had authorised Tarigami to persuade PDP to call off its boycott of the current session of legislature.
Mehbooba told the senior CPM leader that legislature being the fountainhead of democracy and an institution of people’s empowerment should normally be able to ensure security and dignity of people through rule of law but the present dispensation has completely undermined it. “While everything in the state is happening undemocratically” she told Tatigami, how can the legislature command any credibility? This she said is a serious issue and unless the government shows some inclination to stop atrocities and initiates action against the killers of 110 innocent persons the Assembly session will lack any seriousness and credibility. “Our discussions within the four walls of legislature cannot be isolated from the shameful realities of life outside it” she maintained.
The PDP president said even on the opening day of the present session the government unnecessarily clamped curfew as if to convey a message of arrogance and dictatorial attitude to legislators. The following day it went a step ahead and seized all the newspapers carrying the proceedings in the legislature after having banned news from local TV channels. To add insult to injury, the chief minister washed his hands off any knowledge of the seizure order or operation, Mehbooba pointed out wondering why should such a thing have happened at all with or without chief minister’s knowledge? She said journalists were roughed up on Friday and it was not the first occasion to gag them and leave the field open to official media to spread one sided propaganda.
Mehbooba said while outside the house reign of terror continues unabated inside all the business related to current situation has been virtually banned. All the resolutions furnished by the largest party of the state, the PDP have been disallowed by the speaker. These resolutions, she conveyed to the Committee pertained to revocation of AFSPA, reduction in troops on civilian duty, holding of unconditional dialogue to resolve Kashmir issue and renegotiation of power projects sold out by NC to the NHPC.
Expressing her anguish at the continued crackdown on civilian population, Mehbooba said while the government claimed to have decided to release 50 youth these were actually the boys released by courts on bail. The process of getting them cleared by the unified headquarters even after court orders only indicated the formal subjugation of judicial process to security authorities. But in the meanwhile, police continued to pick up more boys without any authorization or accountability who are facing worst torture. In cities, towns and the villages, security forces, police. SOG and Ikhwanis have been given a free licence to beat up people, dishonour them, harass them and extort ransom from most of the innocents in which NC workers are acting as agents and collaborators. She said as the winter is approaching government forces have rendered thousands of houses vulnerable to cold by smashing window panes and in many cases removing the window itself.
Unless, this lawlessness comes to a halt, asking questions in the legislature will sound a meaningless charade, Mehbooba conveyed to the committee while reiterating her party’s unshakable faith in democratic functioning. She said staying away from proceedings of the house to register protest of the people was an established parliamentary practice.