Mehbooba Mufti invites Omar Abdullah to her swearing-in ceremony

Mangalore Today News Network

Srinagar, Apr 2, 2016:  Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti on Saturday invited National Conference working president and former J-K chief minister Omar Abdullah to her swearing in ceremony that will be held in Jammu on Monday.

“Very gracious of Mehbooba Mufti Sahiba to phone & invite me to her oath taking ceremony. I look forward to being there on the 4th,’’ Omar Abdullah wrote on twitter.

Mehbooba Mufti will take oath on Monday as the first woman chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir along with a group of PDP and BJP ministers.

Sources said that there is every likelihood that most of the ministers who were in the cabinet of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed will be retained in the new dispensation; however there is also possibility that one or two fresh faces will be inducted in the cabinet and portfolios of some ministers will either be changed or swapped.

BJP’s Nirmal Singh will take oath as the deputy chief minister of the state. On Friday, BJP general secretary Ram Madhav visited Jammu and finalised the list of BJP ministers. Sources said that two to three Union Ministers will attend the oath ceremony that Mehbooba Mufti wanted to be low key affair unlike previous oath ceremony of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed which Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended.

Mehbooba Mufti, who is in Srinagar, held close door meetings with senior party leaders and parliament members, Tariq Hameed Karra and Muzuffar Hussain Baig and finalized the list of ministers who will take oath along with Mehbooba Mufti.

Karra, who represents Srinagar LoK Sabha seat was opposing alliance with the BJP and wanted PDP to form government with secular parties, however, after Mehbooba Mufti met Karra at New Delhi, he decided to put his weight behind the Mufti. Sources said that Mehbooba along with her family members and senior leaders will travel to Jammu on Sunday.