Omar Abdullah sworn in as J&K CM, Congress opts out of Cabinet; NC denies rift in alliance

SRINAGAR, OCTOBER 16: Omar Abdullah, the Vice President of the National Conference (NC), was sworn in as the first Chief Minister of the Jammu and Kashmir Union Territory on Wednesday.

The 54-year-old leader took the oath of office and secrecy from Lt Governor Manoj Sinha at the SKICC in Srinagar. His party leader Surinder Chaudhary was sworn in as his deputy.

The other Ministers that took oath include Sakina Ittoo, NC MLA from Damhal Hanjipor, Javed Rana, NC MLA from Mendhar, Javed Dar, NC MLA from Rafiabad and Satish Sharma, an independent MLA from Chammb, who has extended support to the NC after the elections.

The swearing-in ceremony was attended by prominent leaders of the INDIA alliance, including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, NCP leader Supriya Sule and Communist Party leaders D Raja and Prakash Karat.

Meanwhile, the Congress, which contested the polls as the alliance partner of NC, has decided not to join Omar’s Cabinet. Sources within the Congress indicated that the party would instead extend support to the NC-led Government from the outside.

According to sources, the National Conference had offered 1 Cabinet berth to the Congress, but the party expressed dissatisfaction with this single ministerial position, insisting on 2 instead.

However, since only 9 Ministers, including the Chief Minister, can be sworn in for a 90-member Assembly in the J&K Union Territory, the National Conference was reluctant to extend more than 1 Cabinet berth.

Securing 6 seats in the 90-member J&K Assembly marks the Congress’ worst performance, down from 12 seats in the 2014 Assembly polls. To appease the Congress, the National Conference has also offered 1 of the 4 vacant Rajya Sabha seats in J&K.

The J&K Congress chief recently stated that the restoration of statehood and land rights for the people of Jammu and Kashmir is more important than ministerial berths.

Amid reports of discord within the NC-Congress alliance following Congress’ decision not to join the coalition Government, National Conference Vice President Omar Abdullah claimed that all is well in the alliance.

“Why would there be issues within the NC-Congress alliance? If there were, Kharge, Rahul and other senior Congress leaders would not be coming here”, Omar responded when asked about the state of the alliance.

Omar asserted that the presence of senior Congress leaders demonstrates the strength of the alliance, emphasizing, “We will work for the people.”

The Congress, which has secured 6 seats in the 90-member J&K Assembly, has opted to support Omar’s Government from outside rather than join it.

(Courtesy: TNIE)