Jammu: PDP leader and Pulwama MLA Waheed ur Rehman Parra on Wednesday alleged that a deeper conspiracy was at play, which prevented crucial issues concerning Jammu and Kashmir including Waqf Amendment Bill from being discussed in the legislative assembly.
“Unfortunately, the entire session was held according to the BJP’s agenda. The Waqf Amendment Bill should have been debated thoroughly, as happened in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. We had expected strong opposition here, considering that Jammu and Kashmir is a Muslim-majority region. That didn’t happen—and it’s a huge disappointment,” Parra told reporters outside the Assembly Secretariat.
He added that several other critical issues were also deliberately sidelined. “There was a bill on daily wagers, a bill on property rights, a bill on the rationalization of reservations, and even a bill on statehood. All of this was left in disarray because the NC refused to allow a debate on the Waqf issue or to pass a resolution against the bill. That destroyed everything.”
Asked about the pandemonium witnessed on the floor of the House on the last day of the budget session, particularly his verbal spat with Aam Aadmi Party MLA Mehraj Malik, Parra was guarded in his response and termed the ruckus as “an issue of least importance.”
“I think the most important thing at a larger level is the Waqf issue. Unfortunately, on the last day of the session—after six years—we were finally looking forward to an elected government, to an assembly session where debates and discussions could be held, breaking the long silence in Jammu and Kashmir. But the most sensitive issue, the Waqf Amendment Bill, was brushed aside. India is the second-largest Muslim country, and Jammu and Kashmir is its largest Muslim-majority region. We expected a threadbare discussion and a resolution against the bill. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen—and that’s our biggest disappointment with this House.”
Asked again about the altercation with Mehraj Malik, Parra downplayed the incident: “Such things happen. Small issues arise—there are many sensitive matters being dealt with. We don’t want to shift focus to the actions of one member. For us, the larger issues—especially the Waqf Amendment Bill—are far more important.”
