BJP Legislator's Budget-Focused Address Earns Rare Bipartisan Applause in Polarized J&K Assembly
In a notable departure from the typically divisive atmosphere of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly, a young BJP member of the legislative assembly (MLA) garnered rare praise from across the political spectrum on Saturday. Devyani Singh Rana, 31, delivered a speech that was strictly confined to budgetary issues, focusing on substantive governance matters rather than political rhetoric.
Political Background and Personal Journey
Devyani Singh Rana is the daughter of former Nagrota MLA Devender Rana, who passed away in 2024 shortly after winning the assembly election. Following her father's demise, Devyani joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and was appointed vice-president of the Jammu and Kashmir BJP Yuva Morcha in January 2025. The BJP fielded her from the Nagrota constituency in a bypoll held in October 2025, which she successfully won, continuing her father's political legacy.
A Speech Focused on Governance Amid Political Polarization
While the governing National Conference legislators predominantly focused their discussions on Jammu and Kashmir's special status, and the BJP highlighted developmental gains following the abrogation of Article 370, Devyani Rana took a different approach. For approximately twelve minutes, she captivated the House by raising critical issues directly related to the budget and public welfare.
She specifically flagged several key concerns:
- Electricity shortages and unstable voltage conditions
- The union territory's growing climate vulnerabilities
- Challenges in the education sector
- Transportation infrastructure issues
Detailed Critique of Budgetary Allocations
In her comprehensive analysis, Rana expressed strong concern over a Rs 271-crore reduction in the disaster management, relief, and rehabilitation department allocation. She emphasized that this sharp cut comes during a year that witnessed unprecedented and intense rainfall, which devastated large portions of rural Jammu.
"These names represent the lives lost in the Jammu division," she stated emotionally, referencing specific tragedies in her constituency including three-year-old Mahi who died in a landslide and 28-year-old Sheer Khan who drowned in a river. She called for significantly stronger flood and landslide management measures to prevent such future tragedies.
Regarding last year's flash floods in Jammu, Rana detailed how people lost their lives, bridges sustained damage, roads became unsafe, and houses were destroyed. "Our children were stranded at home and in colleges. Apple trucks were stuck on the Jammu–Srinagar National Highway (NH-44), and our traders suffered losses," she recounted, advocating for increased allocations in disaster management given that Jammu and Kashmir is "earthquake-prone, landslide-prone and fire-prone."
Social Sector and Infrastructure Concerns
The MLA also highlighted significant under-spending in social sectors, questioning how approximately Rs 193 crore less spent on education would help uplift children from poor families. She further pointed to a substantial reduction of Rs 782.8 crore in power capital expenditure, noting this comes at a time when voltage remains unstable and transformers frequently fail across the region.
While welcoming the initiative for free bus travel for persons with disabilities, Rana questioned its effective implementation. "Are these buses adequately equipped with ramps and access mechanisms? And when there have been documented cases of buses failing to stop even for women, what deterrent exists to ensure compliance?" she asked pointedly.
Cross-Party Recognition and Personal Reflections
As she concluded her speech, members from the National Conference, BJP, and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) thumped their tables in approval and crossed over to her seat to offer congratulations—a rare show of bipartisan appreciation in the highly polarized assembly.
Devyani Singh Rana holds a degree in economics from the University of California. As the eldest of three siblings—two sisters and a brother—she is a businesswoman who took over management of the family business after her father's death. "I feel humbled and very blessed by the response to my speech. We all work for the public good," she told reporters afterward.
Explaining her approach, she noted that since the ongoing Assembly session is the budget session, she preferred to focus exclusively on budgetary matters to identify problem areas that could be addressed in coming years. "I chose to speak in English because the budget across all quarters is presented and discussed in English," she clarified, emphasizing her commitment to substantive policy discussion over political posturing.
