BJP MLAs stage a walkout from the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly during the budget session in Jammu, Wednesday, February 11, 2026. | Photo credit: PTI
BJP lawmakers thronged the well of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly on Wednesday (February 11, 2026) and staged a sit-in to press for an apology from Chief Minister Omar Abdullah for his “unparliamentary remarks” against them.
This came shortly after BJP members, except Leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma, returned to the House at the end of question hour after meeting earlier on the issue.
BJP members gathered in the front row and continued chanting slogans against the government and demanded an apology from the Chief Minister.
However, the Speaker said that they could not raise the issue again after leaving the House on the issue.
The BJP claimed that the Chief Minister left the House when he saw them entering the Assembly.
The Speaker asked the House not to record the BJP’s protest and proceeded with the proceedings. Later they gathered in the well and held a sit-in.
Earlier, the assembly witnessed rowdy scenes for more than 30 minutes during question hour.
When the House assembled for the day, BJP legislator Sham Lal Sharma stood up and demanded that the Leader of the House apologize for his remarks or that the Speaker make a statement in the absence of the Chief Minister.
“Such an incident is unprecedented. The language used by the Chief Minister, the Speaker of the House, is not the language that can be used in any Parliament…I want to ask the Leader of the House if he retracts the words he used yesterday in this House about the BJP legislature party,” Mr Sharma said.
“If he does not withdraw them, then we will leave it to his conscience – what his inner voice tells him – whether the words used in this House were appropriate or not. If the Chief Minister is not here, then I will leave it to the Speaker and the reaction. It is your responsibility to say something about this,” he said.
Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather tried to convince BJP members to allow question hour to continue and resolve the issue when the leader of the house is on the floor.
“Whatever happened yesterday (Tuesday) was unfortunate. Let the chief minister come and he can make a statement if he wishes. I cannot make a statement on his behalf,” the spokesperson said.
Health Minister Sakeena Itoo also accused BJP members of using unparliamentary words, especially against Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary and lying in the house.
Mr. Choudhary suggested that the Speaker examine all unparliamentary words used on both sides and delete them from the records so that the proceedings could continue without any disruption.
Opposition leader Sunil Sharma opposed the motion and refused to budge and later led a strike, chanting slogans like “derogatory sarkar hai hai and unparliamentary sarkar hai hai” besides “Bharat Mata ki Jai”.
Pandemonium erupted in the House during Mr Abdullah’s speech on Tuesday (February 10) when BJP members protested against some of his remarks against them and demanded an apology.
Mr Abdullah ended the debate on the Union Territory’s budget presented on February 6 when BJP members termed some of his remarks as “unparliamentary”.
While the chief minister ruled out apologizing to BJP members for the remarks, saying he was willing to retract his words but was not allowed to speak during repeated disruptions, Mr Sharma said the party would not allow the House to function until the CM tendered an unconditional apology on the floor of the House.
Published – 11 Feb 2026 12:17 PM IST