J-K Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti and National Conference leader Omar Abdullah sparred in the Jammu and Kashmir assembly this morning, with an argument over the setting of a "Sainik colony" fast turning personal.


NDTV reports that Mufti accused Abdullah, a former chief minister, of spreading rumours on Twitter, on which he is very active.


"I know you will be happy if I delete my Twitter account," retorted Abdullah, vowing to continue tweeting and "raising public issues through the forum".


The heated debate began after independent lawmaker Engineer Rashid quoted media reports on plans to set up a Sainik colony - a separate residential complex for former servicemen - and asked the government to explain them.


An angry chief minister responded by saying that she would not allow anybody to "destabilise peace by spreading false and inflammatory reports." She said her government would take strict against those who spread "such false news reports".


Mufti's People's Democratic Party or PDP rules Jammu and Kashmir in partnership with the BJP, which favours the setting up of a Sainik Colony in Kashmir, a move opposed by the state's regional parties. The PDP has so far rejected the proposal saying there is no land to allot to "non-state subjects."


Also controversial is the BJP demand for separate resettlement colonies for Kashmiri Pandits who had to migrate out of the state when militancy was at its height in the state.