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| Only one new face in coalition cabinet | | | Early Times Report
Jammu, Jan 5- Except Shyam Lal Sharma, brother of Madan Lal Sharma MP, all other eight ministers, who were sworn in today by Governor, N.N.Vohra, are old faces who have been earlier in the cabinet headed by either Farooq Abdullah, Mufti Mohammed Sayeed or by Ghulam Nabi Azad. The other new face was that of Omar Abdullah who took over as the 11th Chief Minister of the state for the first time. Reports said that Ghulam Nabi Azad has been instrumental in getting Shyam Lal Sharma inducted in the cabinet. Earlier, he had supported him for the post of the Deputy Chief Minister. His idea was dropped when senior leaders from the state had registered their protest.
Initially the ruling alliance had plans of forming a six-member council of ministers but when pressure mounted from the influential legislators, Omar agreed to induct four more people in the cabinet. What caused major surprise among the people in Jammu was the way Shyam Lal Sharma had been preferred to Raman Bhalla who was the lone Congress leader who emerged successful from Gandhi Nagar constituency despite the fact that BJP had swept the winter capital. From the National Conference four seasoned ministers, Abdul Rahim Rather, Mian Altaf Ahmed, Ali Mohammed Sagar and Surjit Singh Slathia were sworn in as Ministers. The Congress camp was represented by Tara Chand, Assembly Speaker, Taj Mohiuddin, Nawang Rigzin Jora, Peerzada Mohammed Sayeed and Shyam Lal Sharma.
0Mian Altaf, Abdul Rahim Rather, Ali Mohamamed Sagar and Surjit Singh Slathia had remained cabinet ministers between 1996 and 2002.Taj Mohiuddin, Nawang Rigzin Jora and Peerzada Mohammed Sayeed were ministers when the cabinet was headed first by Mufti Mohammed Sayeed and later by Ghulam Nabi Azad.
Official source said that the council of ministers was likely to be expanded either before or after budget session of the Assembly. Omar can take 15 more faces in the council of ministers. While the Congress has given equal representation to the Kashmir valley and the Jammu region in the cabinet, the National Conference was able to accommodate only one legislator from Jammu and all other four hailing from the valley. Again Congress has given representation to Ladakh also by inducting Nawang Rigzin Jora in the cabinet
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