Omar Abdullah calls on J&K Lt Governor, stakes claim to form government

Srinagar, Oct 11 (IANS) National Conference (NC) Vice President, Omar Abdullah on Friday called on Lt Governor Manoj Sinha at the Raj Bhavan and staked claim to form the government in Jammu and Kashmir. 

"I met the LG and handed over letters of support that I have received from the Congress, the CPI-M, the AAP and the Independents. I requested him to fix a date for the swearing-in ceremony so that the government can start functioning. It will be a long process as there is Central rule here. The LG will first send the documents to Rashtrapati Bhawan and then to Home Ministry. We have been told it will take 2-3 days. So if it happens before Tuesday, we will have the swearing-in ceremony on Wednesday... All I want to say is that Jammu will not be ignored in this government," he said after the meeting.

The NC legislature party chose Omar Abdullah as the leader of the legislative party on Thursday.

Before going to the Raj Bhavan, Omar Abdullah, a former Chief Minister, told reporters: "We hope that the NC-Congress alliance will get time so that we can inform friends to attend the swearing-in ceremony."

He said the NC-Congress alliance will win the hearts of the people and "overcome the false propaganda (that Jammu is left out of power-sharing in J&K), which is being spread".

"It is not their (people of Jammu) fault. They were fed that stone pelting would start and terrorism would increase, but they did not realise that their jobs had been taken away, their lands had been taken away. Everything has vanished, but they have still fallen for the propaganda," Omar Abdullah said.

He said that he wants all people of J&K to live in prosperity and there are many problems which the people of Jammu and the Kashmir Valley have to face together. He said that to solve the people’s problems, he needs cooperation from the Centre.

Calling J&K the crown of the country, he said if the crown does not shine, how would the country shine?

"Statehood should be restored so that the government can work," he said. He admitted that there are apprehensions that the government in a Union Territory setup might have limited powers.

"That is why we are seeking restoration of statehood so that the government is able to work."

Omar Abdullah said there were no differences with the alliance partner Congress on the government formation.

The NC-Congress alliance includes the CPI-M that has won a lone seat in the assembly elections. In a related development, the independent candidate from Mendhar, Muzaffar Iqbal Khan also announced his decision to support the NC government.

Of the 7 Independent candidates who won the Assembly election, five have now decided to support Omar Abdullah as Chief Minister. These are Pyare Lal Sharma, Satish Sharma, Mohammad Akram Choudhary, and Dr Rameshwar Singh in addition to Muzaffar Iqbal Khan.

The Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) lone winner from the Doda Assembly constituency, Mehraj Malik has also said it would support the NC.

The NC has 42 members, and its allies Congress and CPI-M, six and one, respectively. The BJP has 29, the PDP three, the AAP and the Peoples Conference one each, apart from the seven Independents. While 90 members of the Assembly were elected, 5 members are to be nominated by the Lt Governor on the recommendation of the Union Ministry of Home Affairs. Under the J&K Reorganisation Act 2019, read with the J&K Reorganisation Amendment Act 2013, all five nominated members have the right to vote during government formation.

--IANS

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