SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly on Tuesday witnessed uproarious scenes over the ongoing strike of dailywagers, with treasury benches and opposition members raising slogans against each other. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) demanded a government response, while the ruling National Conference (NC) and Congress accused the opposition of failing to address the issue during its tenure.
After the Question Hour, Leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma reiterated his demand for a statement from the government regarding the protests of daily wage workers, particularly in the Public Health Engineering (PHE) department. “The government should clarify its stance,” Sharma said.
Responding to the demand, Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary criticised the BJP, sand said it had failed to resolve the concerns of dailywagers over the last decade. “We formed a committee within days to address their grievances. Why didn’t you (BJP) do this in the last 10 years?” he questioned, triggering a heated exchange between BJP and the ruling NC-Congress members.
As the commotion escalated, BJP’s Sham Lal Sharma countered, “The government should behave like a government.”
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah intervened, calling for an end to the strike and defending the government’s approach. “The BJP has indirectly admitted that dailywagers have been neglected for 10 years. I appeal to them to call off the strike. A committee led by top officials has been constituted to look into their demands and will engage with them,” he said.
The BJP, however, remained dissatisfied, demanding a separate committee specifically for PHE dailywagers. Omar Abdullah dismissed the demand, questioning BJP’s trust in government officials. “If the BJP does not trust this committee, it means they do not trust the government machinery itself,” he said. (With KNT inputs)
