Omar Abdullah To Take Oath As J&K CM Today, Sources Say Congress Unlikely To Be Part Of Cabinet

Omar Abdullah is set to take oath as the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday amid tight security following his National Conference party’s victory in the recently concluded Union Territory elections. However, the Congress party is unlikely to be a part of the Omar Abdullah cabinet. Omar will be the first Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019 and the bifurcation of the former state into two Union Territories.

Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha will administer the oath-taking ceremony of Omar Abdullah and his ministers at 11.30 am at the Sher-i-Kashmir International Convention Centre (SKICC) in Srinagar.

As the day began, Omar Abdullah paid obeisance at the Mazar-e-Anwar of ‘Sher-e-Kashmir’ Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, in Srinagar.

RIFT IN NC-CONGRESS ALLIANCE?

While the Congress party has been demanding three cabinet berths, Omar Abdullah’s National Conference has offered only one to the party, along with the possibility of a deputy speaker position.

In an exclusive conversation with CNN-News18, leaders of the Congress party said they would not be a part of the Jammu and Kashmir government if the National Conference remains adamant.

They also said they may extend support to the government from the outside.

A final decision on the part of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and party chief Mallikarjun Kharge was awaited.

OMAR ABDULLAH LOOKS FORWARD TO RESTORING J&K’s STATEHOOD

Ahead of taking oath, on being asked about being the first Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370, Omar Abdullah told reporters he is “quite happy” to take oath and looks forward to resolving the problems being faced by the people of the Union Territory, beginning with restoring the region’s statehood.

“I have some strange distinctions, I was the the last Chief Minister to serve a full six-year term, and now I’ll be the first Chief Minister of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The last distinction, as in the one who has served six years, I’m quite happy about being a chief minister of a Union Territory is a different matter altogether,” Abdullah said.

“It has its own challenges, but I hope that the status of a Union Territory is a temporary one. We look forward to working in cooperation with the government of India to resolve the people’s problems, and the best way to do that would be to start by restoring the statehood to Jammu and Kashmir,” he added.

Also speaking about his commitment to working for the people of Jammu and Kashmir, Omar Abdullah said, “There’s a lot to do, we have to let the people know that this is their government and that their voices would be heard.”

“There have been nearly six years and the people here haven’t been heard. It would be our party’s responsibility to listen to them and work accordingly,” Abdullah said.

SECURITY ARRANGEMENTS IN PLACE

Officials told news agency PTI that security has been tightened around the swearing-in ceremony venue, especially because many VVIPs will be attending.

WHO ALL WILL ATTEND OMAR’s OATH CEREMONY

According to PTI, invitations were extended to the constituents of the INDIA bloc.

Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge and Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi are scheduled to attend the oath-taking ceremony of Omar Abdullah, it said.

INDIA bloc leaders, including Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, Communist Party of India (Marxist) central committee’s interim leader Prakash Karat, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)’s working president Supriya Sule, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) deputy general secretary Kanimozhi, and CPI(M) general secretary D Raja arrived in Srinagar on Monday to attend the event, news agency ANI reported.

In a post on X, the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKNC) shared a group picture of all those who had arrived.

GOVERNOR’s LETTER TO OMAR ABDULLAH

On October 14, Governor Manoj Sinha invited Omar to stake his claim to form the next government in Jammu and Kashmir.

This came a day after the Centre revoked the President’s rule in the Union Territory.

In a letter to Abdullah, Sinha said, “I have received a letter of 11th October, 2024 from Dr. Farooq Abdullah, President, Jammu and Kashmir National Conference, wherein it has been informed that you have been unanimously elected as Leader of the Legislature Party.”

Sinha mentioned he had also received a letter from Jammu and Kashmir Congress chief Tariq Hameed Karra, CPI(M) secretary GN Malik, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national secretary Pankaj Kumar Gupta and Independent MLAs-elect Payare Lal Sharma, Satish Sharma, Mohammad Akram, Rameshwar Singh and Muzafar Iqbal Khan extending their support to the NC.

“I am pleased to invite you to form and lead the Government of Jammu and Kashmir. As separately settled, I shall administer Oath of Office and Secrecy to you, and to those recommended by you for induction as members of your Council of Ministers, at SKICC, Srinagar on 16th October, 2024 at 11:30 a.m,” Sinha said in his letter.

The LG’s emissary had handed over the letter to Abdullah and informed him about the date and time of the swearing-in ceremony.

NATIONAL CONFERENCE’s WIN IN J&K ELECTION

Abdullah was unanimously elected the leader of the National Conference Legislature Party on October 10, setting the stage for his second term as Chief Minister. His first term, from 2009 to 2014 when Jammu and Kashmir was a full-fledged state, was also under an NC-Congress coalition government.

The NC won 42 out of the 90 seats which went to poll in the recent elections, while the Congress won six.

Together, the two pre-poll allies hold a majority in the 95-member assembly — five members are to be nominated by the LG.

Their strength is further bolstered by the support from five Independent MLAs-elect and a lone AAP MLA-elect.

ELECTIONS IN JAMMU AND KASHMIR

The President’s rule in Jammu and Kashmir was revoked on October 13, clearing the way for the formation of a new government following the recently concluded Assembly polls in the Union Territory.

The Ministry of Home Affairs had issued a gazette notification in this regard.

“In exercise of the powers conferred by section 73 of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 (34 of 2019) read with articles 239 and 239A of the Constitution of India, the Order dated the 31st October 2019 in relation to the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir shall stand revoked immediately before the appointment of the Chief Minister under section 54 of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019,” read the official order.