Omar Abdullah to be sworn in as J&K's first CM since Article 370 abrogation

The swearing-in ceremony is set for October 16 at Sher-i-Kashmir International Convention Centre, where Lt Governor Manoj Sinha will administer the oath to Omar Abdullah and his ministers

Omar Abdullah will be sworn in today as the first chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir since it became a Union Territory. His party, National Conference, won in the region’s first Assembly election after the abrogation of Article 370.

According to a report by news agency PTI, preparations for the swearing-in ceremony at the Sher-i-Kashmir International Convention Centre (SKICC) are complete. Jammu and Kashmir’s lieutenant governor, Manoj Sinha, will administer the oath to Omar Abdullah and his council of ministers at 11:30 am.

Omar Abdullah oath ceremony: Who will attend?

The National Conference (NC) has invited several prominent leaders from the INDIA alliance to attend the oath-taking ceremony in J&K. The list includes Rahul Gandhi, leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha; Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge; and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee. Other notable invitees are Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar, Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD)’s Lalu Prasad Yadav, and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader MK Stalin.

Uddhav Thackeray of Shiv Sena, Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)’s Mehbooba Mufti, Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann, and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)’s Arvind Kejriwal have also been invited.

The invitation for Omar Abdullah to take the oath was extended by Lt Governor Manoj Sinha on Monday, following the lifting of President's rule in the Union Territory.

In a letter sent to Omar Abdullah, Sinha wrote, "I have received a letter of October 11, 2024 from Farooq Abdullah, president, Jammu and Kashmir National Conference, wherein it has been informed that you have been unanimously elected as leader of the Legislature Party."

Last week, Omar Abdullah was unanimously selected as the leader of the National Conference Legislature Party, paving the way for him to become the chief minister of J&K for the second time. His first term, from 2009 to 2014, took place when Jammu and Kashmir was still a state, governed by an NC-Congress coalition.

As a Union Territory, Jammu and Kashmir has only 10 ministerial positions. News reports indicate that around nine ministers will be sworn into the Union Territory cabinet today. Meanwhile, the Congress, a coalition partner in Jammu and Kashmir, has designated Ghulam Ahmad Mir as the leader of its Legislature Party.

J&K Assembly elections

In the J&K polls, the National Conference secured 42 of the 90 seats, while the Congress won six. Together, they hold a majority in the 95-member Assembly, which also includes five members appointed by the lieutenant governor.

Their alliance also has the backing of five Independent MLAs-elect and one MLA-elect from the Aam Aadmi Party.