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Dissent within both Cong, NC after J-K cabinet expansion
The expansion of the six-month-old Omar Abdullah-led coalition government in Jammu and Kashmir sparked some discontent, with sections within both NC and Congress unhappy over the non-inclusion of their leaders.
The expansion of the six-month-old Omar Abdullah-led coalition government in Jammu and Kashmir sparked some discontent, with sections within both NC and Congress unhappy over the non-inclusion of their leaders.
Senior leader Choudhary Mohammad Aslam resigned from the post of leader of Congress Legislature Party shortly after the oath-taking ceremony yesterday, saying he felt "humiliated" as he was "ignored" in the expansion exercise.
He threatened to resign from the membership of the state assembly if the party high command did not intervene into the issue. Three other party leaders, including former minister Abdul Ghani Vakil, extended their support to him.
Supporters took to streets at his home constituency Surankote and demanded that he should resign from the party.
The story was similar in National Conference too with supporters of Choudhary Mohammad Ramzan (Handwara), Mir Saifullah (Kupwara) and Sajad Ahmad Kitchloo (Kishtwar) taking to streets and raising slogans against the NC leadership for not inducting them in the cabinet.
NC activists were also upset over non-inclusion of Sheikh Mustafa Kamaal, the uncle of the Chief Minister, and four-time winner from Eidgah constituency Mubarak Gul.
Four leaders -- Choudhary Ramzan, Mubarak Gul, Mohammad Yasin Shah (Sonawar) and Shamima Firdous (Habbakadal) did not attend the high-tea after oath taking ceremony.
Some NC workers claimed that the party gave into Congress pressure to drop Kamaal and induct G H Mir, the chief of Democratic Party Nationalist and a Congress ally.
