Jammu, Nov 12: More than a month after the declaration of results for the first Assembly elections in the Union Territory (UT) of Jammu and Kashmir, uncertainty persists over the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) to be allotted to the newly elected Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) for carrying out development work in their respective constituencies.
Despite the completion of the electoral process and the swearing-in of MLAs on October 21, the Jammu and Kashmir UT government has yet to decide on the allocation of CDF.
Mubarak Gul, the former Pro-tem Speaker and senior National Conference (NC) leader expressed his concerns, saying that the government has not yet taken a decision on providing the CDF to the newly elected representatives. “The J&K UT government has not made any decisions about providing CDF to the MLAs,” Gul informed Rising Kashmir, adding that the laws governing such allocations differ between states and union territories, which requires careful consideration before a final decision can be made.
In the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, MLAs were allotted Rs 3 crore annually for constituency development, which was provided in three installments. However, the transition from a state to a union territory has raised questions about how the allocation system will work under the new administrative structure.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Vikram Randhawa, commenting on the issue, said, “The concerned authorities are still unclear about how much CDF will be provided to the MLAs of J&K for development work.” Randhawa said that he, along with other legislators, plans to approach the Chief Secretary for clarity on the matter.
Dr Manyal, another BJP MLA and the party’s General Secretary, said there is no information yet regarding how much CDF would be provided to the MLAs of J&K for carrying out development work in their constituencies.
The delay in deciding on the CDF has left 90 newly elected MLAs in a state of uncertainty. The J&K Legislative Assembly comprises 47 MLAs from the Kashmir region and 43 from the Jammu region. As it stands, none of them can begin the much-needed development work in their constituencies until a decision is made on the allocation of the funds.
The issue has grown more pressing after the short Assembly session, which began on November 04 and was adjourned sine die on November 08. During the brief session, the topic of CDF was raised, but no clarity was provided. The newly elected MLAs have now been waiting for over a month for a decision that could significantly impact the development of their areas.
