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| Six districts remained unrepresented after today’s expansion of Cabinet | | | Early Times Reporter
Jammu | Jan 1
The final expansion of the 22-member council of ministers, headed by Ghulam Nabi Azad, today failed to give representation to all the districts in Jammu and Kashmir. Though the Chief Minister included four more faces in the ministry, as his hands were tied by the law pertaining to the size of the ministry, six districts out of 22 remained unrepresented in the council of ministers. On December 10 Azad had inducted a PDP MLA,Muzaffar Hussain Baig,in the cabinet.
Mr Azad had no alternative but to leave Kupwara district unrepresented because neither the congress nor the PDP had been able to win a single seat out of five from this district.He could have inducted Ghulam Mohiuddin,who had won the Handwara seat as an independent candidate and later joined the PDF. He was a member of the council of ministers headed by Mufti Mohd.Sayeed but Mr Azad preferred to induct a congressman in the ministry.He could add four new faces only after Prem Sagar Aziz,Minister
of state for finance and planning, resigned. Had not Mr Aziz resigned Mr Azad
had to remain content with the induction of only three congressmen in the
ministry as its size cannot exceed 25.
Among other districts that are unrepresented in the cabinet are Ramban,Kishtwar,Shopian,Bandipore and Kulgam.Baramulla district is on the top with four legislators in the council of minister which is followed by Anantnag and Jammu districts with three MLAs from each district in the ministry. Budgam district gets two seats in the ministry and the remaining 10 districts,including Kishtwar,Leh and Kargil, get one seat each.
The Chief Minister had to assuage the ruffled feelings of many an aspirants for
the cabinet berth which was evident from the fact that the Raj Bhawan had received names of only two legislators,Mulla Ram and Abdul Gani Vakil till 3.30 P.M. when the scheduled time for the swearing in ceremony of new ministers was 4 P.M. The Chief Minister was closeted with senior party functionaries for a couple of hours and the Raj Bhawan was informed that the names of two other legislators Saroori and Gharu Ram would be given just five minutes before the swearing in ceremony. While today’s expansion gave SCs representation in the ministry, the Communities of Sikhs and Kashmiri pundits found no place. The fair sex again remained unrepresented. |
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