SRINAGAR: The Speaker of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly has constituted an 11-member House Committee to address issues concerning residential accommodation and other facilities for Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs).
Headed by the Speaker, the panel comprises five MLAs from the National Conference, two from the Bharatiya Janata Party, and one each from the Congress, Peoples Democratic Party, and Peoples Conference, along with an independent MLA supporting the National Conference-led government.
According to a notification, the committee members include Sunil Kumar Sharma (BJP), Ghulam Ahmad Mir (Congress), Nazir Ahmad Khan (NC), Shamim Firdous (NC), Surjit Singh Salathia (BJP), Ali Muhammad Dar (NC), Sajad Gani Lone (PC), Javid Hussain Baig (NC), Choudhary Muhammad Akram (Independent), and Waheed-Ur-Rehman Parra (PDP).
As per Clause (1) of Appendix I of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the J&K Assembly, the committee has been tasked with addressing all matters related to MLA accommodation. It will also deliberate on other amenities provided to legislators, including food, medical aid, and facilities within MLA hostels. The committee’s functions will be advisory in nature.
The Speaker had been contemplating the formation of a House Committee to explore the possibility of reducing rental costs for MLA hostels. Legislative Assembly Secretariat sources clarified that the newly formed panel is separate from the existing House Committee tasked with framing the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Assembly. “There has been no change in the composition of the House Committee on Rules,” they confirmed. (KNO)
