Cabinet expansion likely in a week

Syed Ali Safvi

SRINAGAR, June 14: After much wait, chief minister Omar Abdullah is likely to expand his 10 member ministerial council by the end of this week before the start of the budget session of J&K Legislative Assembly.

According to sources, ruling coalition partners - Congress and National Conference (NC) - are busy giving final touches to the list of candidates to be inducted in the state cabinet.
Many names are doing the rounds. The expanded council promises to be a judicious blend of youth and experience.

The coalition's earlier attempt to expand the ministry was put off due to massive protests over rape and murder of a girl and a woman in Shopian, leaving ministerial hopefuls waiting in the wings.

Sources said Omar might carry out the long-speculated exercise by the end of this week.
Under the rules, the state government can have 25 ministers as per the strength of the 87-member assembly.

Congress sources said it will get eight more ministerial berths - three of cabinet rank and five ministers of state (MOS) - in the expanded council.

The probables to be inducted into the ministry include veteran Congress leader Chowdhary Mohammad Aslam, MLA Gandhinagar Raman Bhalla, MLA and former minister of state Aijaz Khan, MLA Kathua Dr Manohar Lal. The party is deciding on the inclusion of either MLA Inderwal Ghulam Mohammad Saroori or MLA Doda Abdul Majeed Wani. The party is likely to favour induction of independents Hakeem Mohammad Yaseen and Ghulam Hassan Mir from Kashmir.

Earlier there were speculations that either Yaseen or Mir would make it to cabinet, but highly placed sources in the party said that both Yaseen and Mir would be inducted in the council of ministers.

The party has decided against including MLA and former minister, Ghulam Ahmad Mir in the cabinet.

"The coalition government is clear that we don't want tainted persons to be inducted into the cabinet," said a senior Congress leader on condition of anonymity. "Mir has a case pending against him; Both Congress and NC don't want the opposition to make it an issue against the government."

NC also has almost finalised the list. However, sources said, there is a rift between the party president Dr Farooq Abdullah and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah over the inclusion of some names.

The NC probables to be inducted in the ministry include MLA and former minister Chowdhary Mohammad Ramzan, former minister Sakeena Ittoo, bureaucrat turned politician Vijay Bakaya, MLA Kupwara Mir Saifullah, MLA Budgam Aga Syed Ruhullah, MLA Amirakadal Nasir Sogami.

"The party is undecided whether to induct Mir Saifullah or Chowdhary Ramzan," said a senior NC leader. "Farooq sahib is favouring Ramzan while Omar sahib is in favour of Saifullah."

"Names of Sajad Kichloo, Tirlochan Singh Wazir, and Ajay Sadhotra are also doing rounds," he said. "However, only one of them will be inducted into the cabinet."
Bakaya, author of NC's 'Vision Document', is likely to be inducted as Minister for Planning, and Sakeena may be given reins of Social Welfare ministry.

To strengthen its base in south Kashmir, considered to be the PDP stronghold, NC is likely to induct Mohammad Akbar Ganai into the cabinet as minister of state. Ganai had lost to Congress' Ghulam Ahmad Mir from Dooru Shahabad assembly segment in 2008 Assembly elections.

If sources are to be believed, a section within National Conference is opposed to the inclusion of newly elected MLA Dr Mustafa Kamal, who may eventually not figure in the list of probables.