In a historic moment National Conference Vice- president Omar Abdullah took oath as first chief minister of the Union Territory Of Jammu And Kashmir.
The 54- year old Omar picked former BJP leader and party leader Surender Choudhary from Nowshera in Jammu as his deputy, saying he did so to give a voice to people of the region and make his government inclusive. “Our endeavour will be to take everyone along,” the National Conference leader told reporters as reported by PTI after being sworn in.
There are three vacancies and ‘they will gradually be filled’, Abdullah said.
Omar said Choudhary — a former member of the People’s Democratic Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party who emerged a giant killer when he defeated BJP’s J-K president Ravinder Raina from Nowshera by 7,819 votes — was chosen as deputy chief minister so people of Jammu do not feel left out from the government.
NC leader Surinder Kumar Choudhary took oath as Deputy Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir pic.twitter.com/POC1fZM5ul
— ANI (@ANI) October 16, 2024
“I had said that we will not allow Jammu to feel that they do not have a voice or representatives in this government. I have chosen a deputy chief minister from Jammu so that the people of Jammu feel that this government is as much theirs as it is of the rest,” he said.
Five ministers — Sakina Masood (Itoo), Javed Dar, Javed Rana, Surinder Choudhary and Satish Sharma — also took the oath of office.
NC leaders Sakina Itoo, Javed Ahmed Rana, Javed Ahmad Dar and Independent MLA Satish Sharma took oath as cabinet ministers of Jammu and Kashmir pic.twitter.com/xGDQK73B8z
— ANI (@ANI) October 16, 2024
The oath-taking ceremony was held at the Sher-i-Kashmir International Convention Centre in Srinagar and the oath of office to Abdullah along with his council of ministers was administered by J-K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha.
Security has been heightened outside the residence of Omar Abdullah in Srinagar.
INDIA alliance leaders were in full force on the occasion- Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Lok Sabha LoP and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, JKNC chief Farooq Abdullah, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav , left leaders Prakash Karat and D Raja, DMK’s Kanimozhi and NCP’s Supriya Sule attended the swearing-in ceremony.
Lok Sabha LoP and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, JKNC chief Farooq Abdullah, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav at the oath-taking ceremony of Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah
(Source: AICC) pic.twitter.com/GQFYpfPhGu
— ANI (@ANI) October 16, 2024
The Congress-National Conference secured 48 seats, with the NC winning 42 and the Congress only six seats in the Jammu Kashmir assembly elections.
After taking oath as Jammu & Kashmir Deputy CM, Surinder Kumar Choudhary quoted by ANI ,” I have no words to thank our leaders Farooq Abdullah & Omar Abdullah for giving such a big position. With his decision to make me the Deputy CM, Omar Abdullah has proved that Jammu is as important as Kashmir…The honourable Home Minister in Parliament has said that statehood will be restored in J&K. Today when we have been elected by the people here, we hope that Modi ji and Amit Shah ji will restore statehood soon…ur priorties will be to bridge the gap which has come in the last 10 years and resolve issues of unemployment, electricity, water, hospitals, schools and tourism…We will also work to resume Darbar Move again.”
On J&K CM Omar Abdullah’s oath ceremony, Senior Congress leader Dr Karan Singh quoted by ANI said , “I congratulate the Election Commission and the J&K LG as well as GoI for conducting this election. The mandate has been given to the INDIA alliance but in reality, it seems clear that the mandate was given to the National Conference…”
This will be the first elected government in Jammu and Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370 and the reorganization of the former state into two Union Territories.
