Srinagar, June 20: The Speaker, Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly, Muhammad Akbar Lone on Sunday said that Jammu and Kashmir was the only state in India which enjoyed special status under Article-370 of the constitution of India.

“J&K is the only State which has its own State Flag and Constitution,” Lone said in his welcome address at the inaugural session of 75th All India Presiding Officers Conference here.

 He said the State Legislature holds the credit for making the most significant laws such as “Land to the Tiller” under “The JK Big Landed Estates Abolition Act”, the Agrarian Reforms Act, the “Ante Defection Law”, the provision for attachment of immovable property of corrupt public servants under “Anti Corruption Act” and JK State Lands, (Vesting of ownership to the occupants) Act, called the “Roshni Act”.

 He extended warm welcome to the Speaker Lok Sabha, Meira Kumar, Deputy Chairman, Rajya Sabha, K Rehman Khan, Deputy Speaker, Lok Sabha,. Karia Munda, Chairmen of Legislative Councils, Speakers of Legislative Assemblies, Deputy Chairman of Legislative Councils, Deputy Speakers of Legislative Assemblies, and other dignitaries participating in the conference.

 “This conference has brought all of us together, once again, to share our experiences based on certain procedural issues which we will be discussing here, with the objective to arrive upon a consensus to show new horizons to implement our Parliamentary system smoothly and without any un-warranted interruptions. We, as the Presiding Officers of the people’s representative bodies are expected to preserve and uphold the conventions, regulations, rules and procedures of the Democratic system to make it more accountable to the public”, Lone said.

 Being the elected representatives of the people and the Presiding Officers, we have the responsibility to live up to the expectations of general masses at large. He said that we many often, are faced with certain procedural hurdles in the discharge of our professional duties and we are expected to search for their immediate solutions. On numerous occasions, many un-expected incidents and episodes take place during the proceedings of the House, encroaching upon the constitutional boundaries and creating procedures crisis.

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