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| Muftis play Baazi, take home Qazi | | Embittered minister resigns to fight indignity brought to him | | Early Times Reporter
Jammu, Sept 4: The memories of last year's coalition blues today freshened up once again, as embittered Peoples Democratic Party leader Qazi Mohammad Afzal today resigned as Minister from the Azad government saying that he was hurt by stripping of his Forest portfolio.
Qazi Mohammad Afzal was holding the charge of the departments of Housing, Urban Development, Forests, Environment and Ecology. Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad had on Sunday stripped Qazi of his Forest, Environment and Ecology departments without citing any reasons thereof. The reports, however, later suggested that Qazi's department was withdrawn following allegations of misappropriations in the Forest department.
The decision of Qazi's stepping down as Minister came after arrival of Peoples Democratic Patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed on summer capital Srinagar. The Muftis –Mehbooba and Mufti Sayeed –were away in Delhi when Qazi was stripped of his portfolio. Soon after reaching Srinagar, Mufti advised Qazi to step down, said sources.
When contacted Qazi told EARLY TIMES, "I was divested of the forest portfolio by the chief minister without assigning any reason and without taking my party high command into confidence. So, I have decided to step down on moral grounds". Sources, however, maintained that Muftis made Qazi to resign so that the lines of clash can be drawn with the Chief Minister. Sources also claimed that Qazi was reluctant to resign but the party high command suggested him to do so.
Qazi, a senior PDP leader and elected from Ganderbal assembly constituency, put in his paper in protest against the taking away the forest, environment and ecology portfolios on Sunday by Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad describing the action as an "unacceptable deviation" from coalition dharma.
Qazi confirmed that he has forwarded his resignation to the Chief Minister. Meanwhile, the Chief Minister is away in Delhi and will be reaching Srinagar on Wednesday. If Chief Minister accepted the resignation, he will have forward the same to the Governor for final acceptance. The Governor is away in United States and will be returning on Saturday.
"I hereby tender my resignation from the council of ministers as you have left no other course of action for a conscientious person like me", he said in his resignation letter.
He said he has come to know that his party leadership was not consulted before taking away of the portfolios from him. "This is an unacceptable deviation and moral conscience does not permit me to suffer it silently", he said.
Qazi said taking away the portfolios from him in a "rash" manner and making it public has not only put a question mark on his credibility as a minister but also "hit at the very roots of the understanding on the working of a coalition arrangement" between Congress and PDP.
He alleged there was a "sinister, orchestrated campaign to malign" his "reputation".
The stripping of portfolios of Qazi Afzal followed an internal inquiry by the state government which found that not much timber was being marked by the State Forest Corporation (SFC) for use for commercial and private construction work, leading to a situation under which an "artificial scarcity of timber was created in the state.
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