Mehbooba Mufti urges cross-party support for key bills in J&K assembly

People’s Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti has written to Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah, leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma of the BJP and other legislators to support her party’s private member bills on land, regularisation of daily wagers and a ban on alcohol in the upcoming assembly session.

The PDP chief stressed on the need for collective action beyond party lines and called for a united effort to address the grievances of the people. She has also sought support from and written to Ghulam Ahmad Mir of Congress, Sajad Lone of People’s Conference, Muhammad Yousuf Tarigami of CPI-M, Khursheed Ahmad Sheikh of Awami Ittehad Party and other independent MLAs in the J&K assembly.

“People of J&K continue to face unprecedented challenges, particularly since the developments of 2019. Last few years have been immensely difficult for our people who have had to endure political uncertainty, economic stagnation and social distress,” Mufti wrote in the letters to different political parties. The PDP chief, who served as a chief minister of J&K in the PDP-BJP government between 2016-18, said that the parties may differ in political ideology and approach but she firmly believes that there are issues of common interest that transcend partisan lines.


The 40-day budget session in J&K is scheduled to start from March 3 with Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha's address. On March 7, Omar Abdullah will present the first budget of his government which was elected to power in October 2024. “Welfare of people of J&K, preservation of their rights and protection of unique identity are matters that concern us all. In such testing times, it is imperative that we rise above our differences and come together for the greater good,” said Mufti.

The bills from the PDP legislators are on regularisation and recognition of property rights of residents in public lands, special provision for regularisation of adhoc, daily wagers, need based and other temporary workers and prohibition of alcohol. “These bills seek to address urgent concerns affecting the daily lives of our people and uphold their aspirations,” said Mufti. She assured PDP’s complete support for any government initiative or bill that aligns with these core issues. “I look forward to your positive response and hope that we can move forward on these core issues together,” Mufti wrote.