GST rollout: Violence erupts in Jammu and Kashmir Assembly after protests against new tax regime

The proceedings of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly descended into complete chaos on Tuesday as MLAs clashed with each other over the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST).

Visuals from TV news channels showed MLAs assaulting and manhandling each other. MLAs from the National Conference and Congress opposed the implementation of the GST.

Ruckus in Jammu and Kashmir assembly over #GST bill. Assembly adjourned till 02:30 pm pic.twitter.com/0GL9eIcTvR

— ANI (@ANI) July 4, 2017

National Conference, Cong protest against #GST in J&K Assembly;Independent MLA Engineer Rashid taken away by Marshals. @islahmufti with more pic.twitter.com/MuqcxKgHw3

— News18 (@CNNnews18) July 4, 2017

Eventually, the condition in the Assembly became so bad that Engineer Rashid, Independent MLA, had to be marshalled out.

“What wrong have I done? PDP people got provoked and then threatened me,” Rashid told News18. “We were asking them to resolve the problems in Kashmir and they are diluting the issues even further.”

A special session of the state legislature had begun on Tuesday to discuss the issue of implementation of GST in the state.

Police had earlier on Tuesday detained several traders after they tried to march towards the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly to protest the implementation of GST in the state in its present form.

The traders were detained near the gate of the Civil Secretariat complex, which also houses the Assembly, after they took out a protest march, police had said.

The traders were scheduled to hold a sit-in near the Assembly to protest the implementation of the new tax regime in the state in its present form, claiming that it would lead to the erosion of the state’s special position and its fiscal autonomy.

Holding black flags and shouting slogans against the GST, several traders had reached Jehangir Chowk in Srinagar to protest.

They tried to march towards the civil secretariat complex, but police swung into action and detained several of them outside the Civil Secretariat, the police had said.

With inputs from PTI