Legislators’ security must not be compromised or taken lightly: Speaker

Jammu, Mar 31: Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, Abdul Rahim Rather Tuesday said that the matter regarding withdrawal of security from MLA’s and party offices is a matter of concern and needs serious caution and must not be taken casually. He also said that withdrawal of security after an assassination attempt on former CM Farooq Abdullah is very unfortunate.
He said that the issue has been under discussion for the past few days and the same should be taken very seriously by the concerned authorities. The Speaker underlined that security should be provided strictly in accordance with established norms and regulations, noting that there exists a categorisation system at the national level for such arrangements.
Speaker expressed that the message of this House is loud and clear and the concerned authorities should review such decisions and assess situations where there is genuine apprehension and need for security. “Given the current circumstances, we must remain vigilant and cannot take such matters casually. We have to understand that the past incidents cannot be ignored and must guide present decisions. We have to keep in mind what we have suffered in the past,” he remarked. He further observed that arbitrary decisions regarding provision or withdrawal of security do not hold merit. “This is the supreme House, and the concerns raised here must be taken with utmost seriousness,” he concluded.
Earlier legislators held discussions on the security issue and called for immediate intervention by the concerned authorities. MLA’s who spoke on the issue include Justice Hasnain Masoodi, Nazir Khan Gurezi, Nizamuddin Bhat, Surjit Singh Slathia, Salman Sagar, Sajad Gani Lone, Javed Hassan Beg and Rafiq Naik.