SRINAGAR — The Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly on Tuesday withdrew three Bills proposing changes to the salaries, allowances and pensions of ministers and legislators after objections from Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) members, as proceedings also saw fresh questions over the role of the bureaucracy in Assembly affairs.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who had introduced the Bills on Monday, announced their withdrawal and said he had not been in favour of the proposals. He maintained that the legislation would not be pursued if even one member opposed it.
The three Bills were L.A. Bill No. 13 of 2026, seeking amendments to the Jammu and Kashmir Ministers’ and Ministers of State Salaries Act, 1956; L.A. Bill No. 14 of 2026, concerning the Salaries and Allowances of Members of the Jammu and Kashmir State Legislature Act, 1960; and L.A. Bill No. 15 of 2026, proposing amendments to the Jammu and Kashmir State Legislature Members’ Pension Act, 1984.
The proposed legislation related to the financial entitlements of ministers and elected legislators, including salaries, allowances and pensions.
The Bills faced opposition from BJP legislators, who questioned the proposed changes in the financial benefits available to elected representatives. The withdrawal came a day after the legislation was introduced in the House.
Fresh row over bureaucracy
Tuesday’s proceedings also brought the issue of bureaucratic intervention in Assembly affairs back into focus following correspondence from senior officials over the statehood resolution passed by the House on Monday.
Congress MLA Nizamuddin Bhat urged Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather to place a communication from the Law Secretary on the Assembly record, arguing that the letters written by the Chief Secretary and Law Secretary against the resolution raised questions about the authority of the Speaker and the elected government.
“The Chief Secretary and Law Secretary had written a letter, advising against the resolution. This challenges the powers of the Speaker and the government. I want to understand: can the officers act as government?” Bhat said.
Bhat also questioned whether the legislature’s powers were being curtailed under the present administrative arrangement.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah had similarly questioned the circumstances surrounding the Law Department’s communication during Monday’s debate on the statehood resolution, saying he had not been aware of the opinion sent to the Speaker.
Farooq Abdullah attends proceedings
National Conference president and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah attended Tuesday’s proceedings from the Speaker’s Gallery as the House entered the sixth day of the ongoing session.
He watched the proceedings as legislators took up legislative and public-interest matters. His appearance came a day after the Assembly passed Omar Abdullah’s resolution seeking restoration of full statehood to Jammu and Kashmir.
The Assembly also took up other government legislation and matters during Tuesday’s sitting as the autumn session progressed.
The day’s proceedings therefore combined the withdrawal of legislation relating to legislators’ financial entitlements with renewed questions over the relationship between the elected government, the Assembly and the bureaucracy.
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