NEW DELHI: Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi extended wishes to NC leader Omar Abdhullah for taking charge as the CM of Jammu and Kashmir, which marked the first elected government since abrogation of Article 370 in August of 2019.
Rahul Gandhi, whose party has decided to forgo ministries ‘for now’ due to ‘unhappiness’ over statehood not being granted to the union territory of J&K, said “government formation without statehood felt incomplete”.
He further reiterated his claim that democracy was “snatched” from the people and vowed to continue to fight for the cause until the objective is met.
“Today we renew our pledge to continue our fight until statehood is fully restored,” the Leader of Opposition wrote on his post while also congratulating the newly crowned CM of the union territory. Omar Abdullah acknowledged Rahul Gandhi’s wishes and hailed his presence along with Priyanka Gandhi at the event.
“The people of J&K look towards you for your continued support as we work to get our statehood back. Your presence today along with Priyanka Gandhi gave us a lot of encouragement & the family was really happy to get to spend some time with both of you,” he wrote on X responding to Rahul’s congratulatory post.
The Congress party is unhappy over the fact that statehood has not been restored to Jammu and Kashmir, Congress Committee (JKPCC) chief Tariq Hameed Karra said earlier in the day.
“The statehood has not been restored to J& K. We are unhappy, therefore, we are not joining the ministry at the moment,” he said.
On similar lines, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also took to X to extend her congratulations to Omar Abdullah and the members of his newly formed cabinet, while also pledging to work in confidence with INDIA coalition to press for the restoration of “rights” in J&K.
“Many congratulations to the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Mr. Omar Abdullah ji, and all the members of his cabinet. Thank you to the people of Jammu and Kashmir for raising the voice of justice and democracy with the power of your vote. Best wishes for the future,” she wrote.
“The ‘INDIA’ coalition government will work with full dedication to restore the pending rights of the people as well as to fulfil all its promises and people’s aspirations,” she added, in an clear reference to J&K’s statehood.
The Congress’s decision to stay away from the ministry, has fueled speculations of a rift between the NC and Congress, which however has been dismissed by Omar Abdullah. He clarified that while Congress has chosen not to join the cabinet immediately, ministerial positions remain open as discussions between the two parties are ongoing.
“Congress is not out of the cabinet. It’s for them to decide, and we have been in discussions with them. I will not be filling all 9 vacancies in the council of ministers. Some vacancies will be kept open as we are in talks with Congress. Everything is well between NC and Congress, otherwise Kharge ji, Rahul ji, and senior Congress leaders would not be coming here. Their presence is indicative of the fact that the alliance is strong, and we will work for the people (of the state),” Omar Abdullah said.
It must also be noted that the oath taking ceremony of the new chief minister was attended by several leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Kharge Farooq Abdullah, Akhilesh Yadav, Mehbooba Mufti, Sanjay Singh, and D Raja.
The swearing-in marked the first elected government in Jammu and Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370 and the subsequent reorganization of the former state into two Union Territories. The NC-Congress alliance emerged victorious in the recent assembly elections, securing 48 seats, with the National Conference winning 42 and Congress gaining six.