Srinagar: 41 private members’ bills, including a complete ban on the sale and consumption of alcohol in Jammu and Kashmir, are scheduled to be introduced in the Assembly today. According to the Assembly Secretariat, today has been reserved for private members’ bills. These include bills ranging from the establishment of a Lokayukta in the Union Territory to a human rights forum and a complete ban on the import of frozen food into the Valley.
These bills have been introduced in the House by both the ruling and opposition parties. The bill banning the sale and consumption of alcohol has been introduced by four MLAs, including two from the ruling National Conference (NC). NC MLA Ali Mohammad Sagar is one of those who has demanded a complete ban on the sale, advertisement, and consumption of alcohol in the region.
PDP’s Mohammad Fayaz Mir was the first to introduce the bill in the last budget session. He was followed by NC’s Ahsan Pardesi and Awami Ittehad Party MLA Sheikh Khurshid, citing social, religious, and security sensitivities for the ban.
These bills were not passed then and have been placed on today’s legislative agenda. Alcohol consumption is not banned in the region, but public consumption is considered taboo in the Muslim-majority area. A land rights bill to protect the rights of residents is also included on today’s legislative agenda.
NC MLA Mubarik Gul, who heads the NC in the Assembly, has introduced a bill seeking the salary and allowances of the majority party’s chief whip in the House. Private members’ bills are unlikely to be passed, as records show that only three bills have been passed in the House since 1980, the last of which was in 2007. This is attributed to a lack of support. A bill can be introduced by a minister or a legislator. In the former case, it is called a government bill, and in the latter, it is called a private member’s bill.
