BJP legislators take party ministers to task for ‘surrendering’ before PDP

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ministers in the coalition government were taken to task by the annoyed party legislators for, what they alleged, completely surrendering before the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) by endorsing highly controversial decisions recently taken by the government.
Legislators of the BJP warned that they would come on streets along with people if party ministers failed to convince coalition partner PDP to withdraw such decisions, which would prove to be counter-productive for the party in the Jammu region.
Highly placed sources said a meeting of the party legislators was convened on Monday to discuss the party’s strategy for the panchayat elections and response of the people in the ongoing Jan Sampark Yatra. “Instead of discussing panchayat elections, legislators strongly take up the issue of conducting fresh registration of migrants, especially Kashmiri Muslims, and warned that the decision was a sinister design to change the demography of the Jammu region,” a legislator, who was present in the meeting, said.
“As soon as this issue was taken up, majority of the participants cautioned that the government order No 55-R7R of 2016, which was issued on October 5, 2016, and deliberately kept under the wrap would change law and order situation in otherwise peaceful Jammu region,” he said, adding, “Instead of addressing grievances of party legislators, party ministers preferred to maintain silence and this attitude fuelled anger of the legislators”.
As reported earlier, the government has issued an order which allows people from Kashmir to migrate to Jammu. Significantly, there is no formal approval of the Cabinet to the order.
Highly placed sources said party legislators also took party ministers to task for amending rules to provide government jobs to the grandson of separatist leader Sayeed Ali Shah Geelani. Legislators said the decision of the government has sent a very wrong message among people in the Jammu region. “Some legislators sought to draw attention of party ministers towards the clarification issued by the government to give job to Geelani’s grandson and said it appears that our government is working under the pressure of separatists,” a source said, adding that BJP legislators grew angry when party ministers failed to give any satisfactory reply.
The sources revealed that the issue of settlement of Rohingyas and Bangladeshis in Jammu city and its outskirts was also discussed and party legislators sought clarification from ministers about the stand of the state government.