National Conference chief Omar Abdullah will be the next chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir after his party and the Congress formed an alliance.
NEW DELHI: National Conference chief Omar Abdullah will be the next chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir after his party and the Congress formed an alliance on Tuesday to form a coalition government in which they will be "equal partners".
The NC, which bagged 28 seats to become the single largest party, and the Congress with a haul of 17 struck an agreement after Omar, the third generation Abdullah family member, met Congress president Sonia Gandhi in the capital. The NC-Congress combine has 45 seats, one seat more that the number required for a majority in a House of 87.
Emerging from the meeting, 38-year-old Omar said, "it has been decided that I will lead the coalition government in the state of which Congress will be a part of."
Asked about the details of the new government and whether it will be a three-year term each for NC and Congress, Omar, who will be the state's youngest chief minister, said a committee would be formed by both the parties to go into the nitty-gritties of the alliance.
"There were no talks or formulation on the details," said the son of NC veteran Faroqq Abdullah, who has thrice been the chief minister of the border state. The two parties were part of an alliance previously in 1987.
AICC general secretary and J&K in-charge of the party, Prithiviraj Chavan said, "Omar Abdullah called on Congress president and proposed formation of a coalition government.
"The Congress president has accepted the proposal. The government would be headed by Omar Abdullah," said Chavan addressing reporters along with Omar.
"This is going to be a government of partnership. It is going to be a partnership, a coalition between the National Conference and the Congress. We are equal partners. We have an equal stake," said Omar.
Omar, who was educated in Mumbai and Scotland and has Masters degree in Business Administration, said Congress will be a part of the government and would not merely give outside support.
"I look forward to working closely with the Congress for the welfare and development of the people of Jammu and Kashmir," said Omar, who made his debut to the state assembly winning the Ganderbal seat whichhe had lost in 2002.
Among others who attended the meeting in the Capital include former Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, Union minister and J&K Congress chief Saifuddin Soz and party general secretary Rahul Gandhi.
"The clearest and best formula and formulation was an alliance of NC with the Congress as this required no assistance from any other quarter," Omar said.
To a query as to when he would take the oath as the new CM, Omar said it would be decided only after a meeting with governor NN Vohra.
Soz said it was a great opportunity for Omar to provide good governance to the state.
In Srinagar, the PDP said it was "not disappointed" over the decision of the Congress to join a government led by National Conference and maintained that the people of the state have given it a mandate to play the role of a "good, constructive opposition". The PDP's comments came after the Congress rejected its overtures to support any government that will be headed by the national party.
"We are happy that we are finally going to see a democratically elected government sooner than later and we have always been saying that people have given us a mandate to play the role of good, constructive opposition and we will do that," PDP president Mehbooba Mufti said shortly after the announcement in New Delhi that Omar Abdullah will be the state's new chief minister.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}