Mehbooba Mufti's brother to join cabinet

Stage is all set for Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti's brother Mufti Tassaduq Hussain to join her cabinet after his uncle, Syed Farooq Andrabi resigned from the council of ministers on Thursday.

Andrabi, who won the Dooru Assembly constituency, defeating state Congress president GA Mir in 2014, was the J&K Minister of State for Haj and Auquaf in Mehbooba's council of ministers. On Friday, Tassaduq resigned as the coordinator of the Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister's Grievance Cell, the post he held since May this year.

The government has already sent Tassaduq's nomination papers to J&K governor NN Vohra, requesting him to nominate him for the seat in the Legislative Council, which fell vacant after the resignation of PDP leader and erstwhile royal Vikramaditya Singh on October 22.

Sources said Tassaduq will eventually be inducted into the cabinet of Mehbooba Mufti from the PDP quota. Insiders said he may be allocated tourism portfolio which is currently held by chief minister Mufti.