Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Kumar Choudhary speaks during the Budget session of the J&K Assembly, in Jammu, March 30, 2026. J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah is also seen.
| Photo Credit: PTI
With Statehood status not in sight, the J&K Assembly on Monday (March 30, 2026) began voting on around 33 private members’ Bills, including those on the protection of land, regularisation of jobs, and the return of Pandits. However, three Bills submitted by Opposition parties already failed to pass the floor test.
Those Bills that failed to pass the floor test included PDP legislator Waheed ur Rehman Parra’s Sheikh-ul-Alam University Bill for Pulwama; BJP legislator Balwant Singh Mankotia’s Bill on protection of temples and retrieval of illegally occupied land, and Congress legislator Nizam-ud-Din Bhat’s Bill on equitable opportunity of employment in the civil services.
“J&K’s successive governments, including the present dispensation led by Omar Abdullah, have ensured protection of temples, mosques, gurdwaras and churches alike,” said Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary, while opposing the Bill of the BJP.
The ruling National Conference (NC) has 42 members in the 90-member House.
Former J&K Chief Minister and Opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Mehbooba Mufti, who attended the J&K Assembly in the visitors’ gallery, described the private members’ Bills as the party’s bid “to rebuild the Assembly brick by brick”, in the wake of the downgrading of J&K into a UT in 2019.
“Bills have been introduced on daily wage workers, land rights, and the creation of a separate division for Chenab Valley and Pir Panjal regions. Both the government and Opposition need to work together to address the disempowerment of the Assembly and restore its effectiveness,” Ms. Mufti said.
All eyes are on NC legislator Tanvir Sadiq’s J&K Land Grants (Restoration and Protection) Bill, 2025. “The Bill, if passed, will undo the amendments made to the Land Grants Act 1960 in 2022. It will bring relief to those locals who legally have leased land with them for schools, shops, and hotels. I hope the Bill comes up for debate and is adopted,” Mr. Sadiq said.
The J&K Assembly has earmarked two days for the private member Bills. J&K Chief Minister has supported the ruling party’s bid to oppose the three private members’ Bills. “The government does not oppose any private members’ Bills without due consideration. All proposals are examined in detail before a view is taken,” said Mr. Abdullah.
The House will also debate on Bills seeking a ban on the sale and consumption of liquor in the Union Territory and regularisation of casual and daily-rated workers and social security provisions for unemployed youth.
Published – March 31, 2026 05:32 am IST
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