Srinagar: After ten years, a new government is set to assume office in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K). Sources said that Omar Abdullah’s swearing-in ceremony as the Chief Minister of the Union Territory of J&K on Wednesday will be attended by many top leaders of the INDIA bloc. However, in a surprise announcement this morning, the Congress party said it had decided not to be part of the government but would provide support from the outside.
Notably, just four National Conference (NC) ministers will also take the oath. Hence, the Cabinet will bear a clear stamp of Omar Abdullah.
Senior leader of the National Conference (NC), Sheikh Bashir, told IANS, “It is for Congress to decide whether it will support NC through an alliance or externally. But we fought together in the pre-poll alliance. It is up to them if they choose to support us externally.”
Others likely to be sworn in on Wednesday include Surinder Choudhary, the NC MLA from Nowshera constituency in Rajouri district of Jammu division. He defeated the J&K BJP President, Ravinder Raina, in the Nowshera constituency.
The other NC member of the Council of Ministers is likely to be Sakina Itoo, who won the election from D. H. Pora’s seat in the Kulgam district. She has previously served as a minister in Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah-led governments.
Two more Ministers, mostly new faces from the NC, will also be sworn in on Wednesday.
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Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi, Congress General Secretary (Organisation) K.C. Venugopal, Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav, and other leaders of the INDIA bloc are expected to attend the oath ceremony scheduled for 11.30 a.m. on Wednesday at the Sher-e-Kashmir International Convention Centre (SKICC) in Srinagar.
NC President Farooq Abdullah has invited senior leaders of all 21 parties of the INDIA bloc for the swearing-in ceremony of his son.
Among those who confirmed their attendance are Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, and K.C. Venugopal.
Samajwadi Party President and former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav reached Srinagar on Tuesday to join the swearing-in ceremony. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh will also attend the ceremony.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin has deputed DMK MP Kanimozhi for the event. He had to stay in Chennai to monitor adverse weather conditions forecast for the state.
CPI (M) leader Prakash Karat also arrived here on Tuesday to attend Omar Abdullah’s swearing-in ceremony. Former Maharashtra Chief Minister and NCP Chief Sharad Pawar has deputed his daughter and Lok Sabha member Supriya Sule for the ceremony. Communist Party of India leader D. Raja will also attend.
After being sworn in as the Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah will chair a meeting of all the administrative secretaries at 3 p.m. on Wednesday in the Civil Secretariat. The Chief Minister will hold his first Cabinet meeting on Thursday.
Security has been tightened for Wednesday’s swearing-in event. The traffic department has also issued an advisory restricting traffic on Boulevard Road, leading to the SKICC, to ensure a smooth and hassle-free swearing-in ceremony.
Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha will administer the oath to the Chief Minister and his Council of Ministers.
Jammu & Kashmir has an elected government after a decade, and this will be the NC Vice President Omar Abdullah’s second term as CM. His previous term ended in 2014 when J&K was a state that included Ladakh. After the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019, the state was split into two Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.
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(Photo: IANS/Nisar Malik)
