Speaker asks Omar to take opposition into confidence

Jammu, March 20 : Speaker of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly Mohammad Akbar Lone Saturday asked the state government to take the opposition into confidence while taking decision on funds for development of their constituencies.

The speaker made the observation after several opposition members alleged that the planning department, which is headed by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, has been discriminating against the constituencies represented by the opposition legislators.

Intervening during the reply by Minister of State for Finance and Planning Manohar Lal Sharma on the question of fund allotment for development projects during the question hour, the Speaker said that "the government should make every effort to take the members along in every respect of development as it would help it to achieve its set targets more effectively".

Peerzada Mansoor Ahmad of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party said: "There is sheer discrimination and the government is allotting funds for the development of the constituencies represented by legislators of the ruling parties and we are not even told what is being done about our constituencies."

Similar views were voiced by the three legislators of Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party.

"The government is following no criteria in allotment of funds for the development work. It has thrown all rules to winds," the party's leader Harshdev Singh said before staging a walk out of the House along with two of his party members.