IANS
Jammu, March 1
PDP chief Mufti Mohammad Sayeed called for peace Sunday after taking oath as chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, heading a coalition that brought the BJP to power for the first time in India's only Muslim-majority state.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP leaders Amit Shah and L.K. Advani were among the 1,400 guests who witnessed the ceremony, over two months after the PDP and the BJP won 28 and 25 seats respectively in a hung verdict that exposed deep divisions between the Muslim and Hindu areas.
After taking oath in English, Sayeed, 79, warmly hugged Modi and sat close to him on a flower-decked stage at the Jammu University's General Zorawar Singh auditorium to witness the entire ceremony.
Later, addressing the media, Sayeed said he had told Modi that peace was a must if Jammu and Kashmir had to prosper.
He said the Modi government must address the need for a dialogue between India and Pakistan, two countries which dispute the ownership of Jammu and Kashmir. Kashmiris, he said, must be involved in the process.
In an indication as to what he desired, Sayeed lavished praise on former prime minister and now ailing BJP leader Atal Bihari Vajpayee for starting a peace process with Pakistan in 2003 - when Sayeed was chief minister the first time.
And in comments that would not have pleased many BJP supporters, he credited Pakistan, the separatist Hurriyat group and militants for what he said was a peaceful ballot in November-December last year.
"The PDP-BJP government is a historic opportunity to fulfil the aspirations of the people of Jammu and Kashmir and take the state to new heights of progress," Modi tweeted.
The National Conference and the Congress stayed away from the oath-taking ceremony.
National Conference leader Omar Abdullah took a dig at BJP ministers for taking oath to uphold the Jammu and Kashmir constitution - the only Indian state to have its own constitution and a flag.
Son of a religious preacher from the Kashmir Valley, Sayeed will head the government of his Peoples Democratic Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party, and will be the chief minister for all of six years.
BJP leader Nirmal Singh will be the deputy chief minister. He said the two parties would provide a stable government.
Former separatist leader Sajjad Gani Lone took oath as a BJP ally, and then warmly hugged Modi and Sayeed, triggering thunderous applause
Inclusive of Sayeed, the PDP will have 11 cabinet berths and the BJP six, Lone included. The PDP and BJP have three and five junior ministers respectively. Two of the junior ministers are women: Priya Sethi (BJP) and Asiya Naqash (PDP).
The PDP cabinet ministers are Abdul Rehman Bhat Veeri, Javaid Mustafa Mir, Abdul Haq Khan, Syed Basharat Bukhari, Chowdhary Zulfiqar Ali, Haseeb Drabu, Ghulam Nabi Lone Hanjura, Altaf Bukhari, Imran Raza Ansari and Naeem Akhtar.
The BJP's cabinet members are Nirmal Singh, Chander Prakash, Choudhary Lal Singh, Bali Baghat, Sukhnandan Kumar and Lone (Peoples Conference).
The junior ministers are Chering Dorjay, Sunil Kumar Sharma, Abdul Ghani Kohli, Priya Sethi and Pawan Gupta (all BJP) and Abdul Majeed Paddar, Muhammad Ashraf Mir and Asiya Naqash (all PDP). In the evening, the PDP and the BJP released a common minimum programme (CMP), promising to transform Jammu and Kashmir as "the most ethical state ... from the present day position of being the most corrupt state".
PTI
JAMMU, MARCH 1
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the ceremony to swear-in the new J&K government at Zorawar Singh Auditorium in Jammu University on Sunday. Photo: Nissar Ahmad
The PDP seems to have diluted its stand on controversial Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) whereas the BJP has taken a complete U-turn on Article 370 which grants special status to Jammu and Kashmir and both the parties have left open the issue of rehabilitation of West Pakistan refugees while chalking out a common agenda for the alliance.
The “Agenda for Alliance” released by Chief Minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed and Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh spoke about many things including political and developmental issues.
On the Article 370, which gives special status to the State, the BJP, which has been demanding its abrogation, has now agreed on status quo. “While recognising the different positions and appreciating the perception, the BJP and the PDP have on the Constitutional status of J&K, considering the political and legislative realities, the present position will be maintained on all the constitutional provisions pertaining to J&K, including the special status in the Constitution.”
In what could be seen as a compliment to the earlier government, the Agenda said the situation in the State has improved vastly and to build greater public confidence in its sustainability, people of the state must be able to get peace and normalcy dividend. “In this context, the coalition government will thoroughly review the security situation in the state with a view to examine the need for desirability of all the special laws being applied to the state in view of the situation improving.
“...The alliance government will examine the need for de-notifying disturbed areas. This, as a consequence, would enable the Union Government to take a final view on the continuation of AFSPA in these areas.”
While the PDP had maintained in its manifesto that it will review the Disturbed Areas Act, its leaders, during electioneering, had promised that if voted to power, the party will ensure that the AFSPA is withdrawn from the State. The BJP, on the other, had opposed any withdrawal of the AFSPA.
When Mr. Sayeed was asked whether he was saddened by the stand taken on the AFSPA, he shot back saying, “What do you want, peace or AFSPA?” “I know how to ensure that Army is made accountable. Being the Chief Minister, I am also the chairman of the Unified Command,” he said. AFSPA gives immunity from prosecution and other legal proceedings to personnel of the armed forces .
On 25,000 families of West Pakistan refugees, for whom the BJP had promised citizenship of the State, the Agenda says it will “work out a one-time settlement for refugees from Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir of 1947, 1965 and 1971.” “Take measures for sustenance and livelihood of West Pakistan Refugees. Extend all benefits accruing to the people living on the Line of Control to the people living on the International border.”
