Jammu: Ahead of the crucial upcoming Budget session of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly, Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh on Sunday urged BJP MLAs to engage constructively in the House and present a united front on matters concerning the welfare of the people of the Union Territory.
Chairing a luncheon meeting of BJP MLAs here at his residence, Dr Singh underscored the party’s commitment to follow the nationalistic line, raising public-centric issues and bring pressure on the government to ensure that the governance is transparent and accountable.
The meeting focused on key public issues, legislative strategy and the legislative party’s approach in the Assembly, setting the tone for an active and engaged participation in the upcoming Budget session of J&K Assembly.
The discussion revolved around pressing current concerns such as drug addiction, land encroachments and illegal mining, which have been affecting people across the Union Territory.
Several MLAs voiced the grievances of their respective constituencies, highlighting the challenges faced by the public and stressing the need for strong legislative action.
The MLAs also deliberated on how to effectively counter the ruling party and hold it accountable for what some members described as unfulfilled promises from the ruling party’s manifesto.
“Personally, in my parliamentary career, I have always followed the dictum of focussing on ‘issues’ rather than ‘individuals’ and over the years it has proved to be quite a successful approach,” said Dr Jitendra Singh and urged upon the legislators to come prepared and confront the ruling party with well studied, evidence-based interventions in the Assembly, instead of indulging in inconsequential personal attacks.
Dr Singh further said BJP has won the recent Assembly election with a vote share higher than even the ruling party and the people of Jammu region have overwhelmingly reposed faith in the national leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with a strong urge to have a “double engine” government in J&K, as is the case in several other States.
“It is therefore imperative upon us to prove ourselves worthy of the people’s confidence and register the aspirations of the people on the floor of the House,” he said.
The meeting was moderated by the Leader of Opposition (LoP) Sunil Sharma, who laid out the plan for BJP’s participation in the legislative proceedings.
He said such coordination meetings with the UT and central leadership of the party will be a regular phenomenon and briefed the legislators about the calendar of interactions during the next few days.
He emphasized the significance of legislative party meetings that would take place before and during the session to fine-tune the party’s strategy on a daily basis.
The meeting concluded with remarks from BJP J&K President Sat Sharma, who reinforced the importance of coordination among party members and their responsibility in voicing the concerns of the people effectively in the legislature.
With the budget session set to begin soon, BJP’s legislative wing is poised to play a proactive role in the Assembly, ensuring that public issues remain at the forefront of the debate, he said.
Sat Sharma urged the legislators to carefully draw their strategy for the upcoming Assembly session to play the role of an effective Opposition.
