SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir Governor N N Vohra Jammu and Kashmir Governor N.N. Vohra on Friday evening faxed letters to PDP and BJP to “urgently” intimate him about possibilities of government formation in the state, an official said.
“Besides being in touch with the leadership of the ruling coalition partners in the state, the governor has today faxed letters to PDP president, Mehbooba Mufti and BJP president Sat Pal Sharma to urgently inform him about their respective positions regarding new government formation in the state,” said a Raj Bhawan spokesman here.
Vohra has finally cleared decks for imposition of governor’s rule by sending the letters to the two parties those had formed a coalition government in the state in March last year.
Given the reluctance of Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti to take oath before four days’ mourning of her deceased father, Mufti Muhammad Sayeed ends, it is unlikely that the state will have a new government before Sunday.
Insiders in the two parties have told Kashmir Observer the two alliance parties are seeking fresh terms to have a better say in the new government.
“One thing is certain, after her father died, Mehbooba Mufti is in deep shock and any hint of the BJP trying to derive political mileage before committing support to her could jeopardize the entire arrangement between the two parties.
“As far as we know her, she would not negotiate a fresh deal with the BJP especially if such a proposal is put forth by the BJP after her father’s death.
Party sources said that despite three party bigwigs approaching Mehbooba Mufti since Friday morning, they found her in deep shock and apparently unwilling to take oath of office. “Madam is still in deep shock,” one insider said, “It might take her some more time to come out of the deep personal loss.”
The persistent denial by the party chief has apparently put the PDP leaders in a tight spot, making many believe that the daughter is doing it father’s way: taking time before calling shots.
As Mehbooba Mufti, the daughter and heir-apparent of late CM Mufti, continues to stay reluctant for stepping in her father’s shoes, the governor rule is likely to be imposed in the headless state by evening.
With almost every powerful man in the political executive losing the status, PDP is back to February 2015 position. Some ministers in the Mufti cabinet were shocked to learn that they are no more ministers. In fact, one top BJP minister has approached top government functionaries asking them why his name as minister has been deleted from the GAD website.
It took some time for the officers to explain that with the demise of the chief minister, their status stands reduced to the lawmaker.
Under the rule of the law, the new chief minister will take oath along with a new team which may or may not be the same as that of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed. Kashmir has witnessed a major change when Dr Farooq Abdullah succeeded his father in 1982 and used the occasion to enforce a generation shift.
Meanwhile PDP insiders said the party has taken a strong exception over some bureaucrats insisting on an early oath-taking ceremony. “They are officials and should remain as officials,” one insider said.
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