Jammu, Feb 18: Tensions flared in the J&K Legislative Assembly for around half an hour on Tuesday as Congress and National Conference MLAs, joined by independents, protested against BJP MLA Vikram Randhawa over his alleged remark dubbing “Kashmiri Muslims as landgrabbers.”
The controversy stems from Randhawa’s February 13 remarks during Question Hour, while raising supplementary questions on encroachments in his Bahu constituency. Congress MLAs Irfan Hafeez Lone, Iftikhar Ahmad, and independent MLA Sheikh Khursheed, joined by NC members, accused him of defaming “Kashmiri Muslims” while pointing out that Randhawa himself had allegedly encroached on JDA land and received an eviction notice.
Randhawa, however, denied targeting any community, stating his comments were region-specific and based on the reply given on behalf of the Chief Minister, who also oversees the Housing and Urban Development Department. He insisted that if the record showed otherwise, he would retract it.
As the protest continued, Khursheed displayed a placard with “Khasra No 211,” attempting to raise the issue at the start of proceedings, but the Chair did not allow disruption during Question Hour. After Question Hour, the protest escalated with Congress and NC MLAs holding papers and posters, chanting slogans and demanding an apology from Randhawa.
The Deputy Chief Minister, Surinder Choudhary, intervened, stressing that encroachment issues concern all types of land—JDA, state, custodian, auqaf, forest, and defense—and should be discussed without turning it into a communal issue. He urged Randhawa to apologize if he used community-specific terms.
Randhawa reiterated that his remarks referred only to the region, not a community, and his constituency-specific concern about 690 kanals of JDA land encroachment was settled in 2021. His clarification pacified the agitating members, who eventually returned to their seats.
The Speaker, Abdul Rahim Rather, stated that he would check the House record and expunge any inappropriate remarks if found. The incident highlighted rising tensions over JDA land encroachments and regional sensitivities in the Assembly. (Agency)
