Flood Relief Measures: 2 BJP MLAs walk out alleging contradictory replies on flood
Jammu, Feb 3: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLAs Rajiv Jasrotia and Pawan Gupta on Tuesday staged walkouts, though separately yet on the same issue i.e., contradictory and dissatisfactory reply by the government on the issue of allocation of funds for flood relief measures.
Issue erupted after the Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary, in reply to a question of Jasrotia, informed the House that Rs 289.39 Cr were released during the current financial year, 2025-26, under the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF), besides an amount of Rs 100 Cr (Rs 5 Cr for each district) was released under the UT Capex Budget (2025-26) of DMRRR under the activity “Flood relief measures” to undertake urgent flood restoration works across Jammu and Kashmir.
He was replying, on behalf of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah. Choudhary said that no funds till date were released by the Government of India for flood restoration works during the current financial year 2025-26.
In the same breath, the Deputy Chief Minister said that based on the report of Inter-Ministerial Central Team (IMCT), the Gol under SASCI (Scheme for Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment) allocated Rs 1431 Cr for J&K for flood restoration works.
However, the reply did not satisfy the MLA. He alleged that Jammu faced maximum devastation but the funds were diverted to Kashmir. “Besides, your reply and supplementary replies are also contradictory. On one hand, you are saying that there were no funds released while at the same time, you are saying that the Centre under SASCI (Scheme for Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment) allocated Rs 1431 Cr for J&K for flood restoration works. We wanted details component wise also. They were not given. This government is discriminating against Jammu,” Jasrotia alleged.
His party colleagues too endorsed his points. Pawan Gupta also pointed towards, what he alleged, “contradictions in the replies.”
However, the Deputy Chief Minister, rejecting the charges, stated that the NC Government was treating both the regions equally. “As far as your love for the central government is concerned, we do love it (Centre) equally. But for our government, both the regions are equal. You don’t see the plight of the Kashmir region. We feel pained at the losses suffered by both the regions. Our view is not jaundiced,” he said and also raised the restoration of the Darbar Move issue at this point.
“We understood the plight of Jammu traders and restored the Darbar Move which was stopped by the BJP. You are demanding National Law University now. Earlier you celebrated the closure of the medical college,” the Deputy Chief Minister said.
Upon it, Jasrotia alleged that the government was trying to deflect the real issue. “You gave Rs 62 Cr to Kashmir while Jammu region suffered the most,” he said and walked out of the House.
His party colleagues Balwant Singh Mankotia and Pawan Gupta too agitated on the issue. After a while, Pawan Gupta too staged a walkout on the same issue.
Later Pawan Gupta, while talking to reporters outside the Legislature complex, targetted the government and also accused the Deputy Chief Minister of discriminating against Jammu.
