Jammu: Twenty-eight members of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) sparked controversy on Wednesday by making derogatory remarks against the Kashmiri martyrs of July 13, 1931, during a session of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly.

According to a statement by Kashmir Media Service, Sunil Sharma, the Leader of the Opposition from BJP, made these remarks in response to a speech by People’s Democratic Party (PDP) legislator Waheed-ur-Rehman Para. Para had called for the restoration of public holidays on July 13 to honor the memory of the martyrs.

The incident drew immediate reactions from other political leaders, including M.Y. Tarigami of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and Congress leader Nizamuddin Butt. Both demanded that the derogatory remarks be expunged from the record and called for an apology from Sharma.

The date of July 13 holds historical significance in the region, as it was previously observed as a public holiday in Jammu and Kashmir. The day commemorates the 22 men who died at the hands of the Dogra Maharaja’s soldiers outside Srinagar Central Jail in 1931. However, the BJP-led government, following the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019, removed this public holiday along with others, including the December 5 holiday marking Sheikh Abdullah’s birth anniversary.