Sajid Raina
Srinagar, Feb 12 : As the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly prepares to host its full-fledged Budget Session on March 3 after a gap of more than six years, legislators are posting questions on social media to test waters.
“Even before stepping into the Assembly, legislators are trying to trigger a debate in the virtual world. The battle for attention has already begun,” a politician told news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO).
According to the details available with KNO the Assembly Secretariat had set a February 10 deadline for MLAs to submit their questions, private members’ bills, and resolutions. Each of the 90 legislators was allowed to file 20 questions—10 starred (requiring oral answers) and 10 unstarred (written responses)—along with three private members’ bills and four resolutions.
After submitting their questions and bills the lawmakers are shaping the narrative in real time, using digital platforms to generate public response around their proposals. The push for visibility has seen a flood of online campaigns, spearheaded by lawmakers.
PDP leader and Kupwara MLA Mir Mohammad Fayaz has introduced The Jammu and Kashmir Prohibition of Alcohol Bill, 2025, calling for a complete ban on alcohol sales across the UT, arguing that alcohol addiction is tearing apart families and damaging social harmony.
National Conference MLA Ahsan Pardesi has gone further, demanding a region-specific ban, tabling The Lal Chowk Constituency Alcohol Sale Ban (Prohibition) Bill, 2025, seeking prohibition in Kashmir and other Muslim-majority districts.
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and Doda MLA Mehraj Malik, on the other hand, has shifted the spotlight to governance failures in his constituency.
Through a series of pointed questions, Malik has raised the alarm over the dire conditions of daily wage workers, the environmental impact of power projects in Chenab Valley, and the lack of basic infrastructure.
Senior Congress leader and Bandipora MLA, Nizamuddin Bhat, stated that the party views liquor as a social evil and will thoroughly assess the proposed prohibition bill once it is formally introduced in the Assembly.
“Liquor has no place in our spiritually rich society. A land known as ‘Reshwari’ (the land of saints) should not be tainted by the alcohol trade,” said a spokesperson for the Awami Ittehad Party (AIP), led by Sheikh Abdul Rashid, popularly known as Engineer Rashid.
The AIP has also announced to push for a ban on online gaming, citing its devastating impact on families—(KNO)
