Jammu and Kashmir Governor N N Vohra today invited PDP President Mehbooba Mufti to form the government in the state, who will become its first woman chief minister.
"Governor N N Vohra today invited President of the People's Democratic Party Mehbooba Mufti to form and lead the PDP-BJP coalition government in Jammu and Kashmir", an official Raj Bhawan spokesman said.
He said the Governor's invitation to Mufti follows the earlier discussions with the PDP and BJP presidents regarding the formation of the new government and the subsequent communications received from both the parties, including state chief of BJP Sat Sharma.
"The oath-taking ceremony is scheduled to be held on Monday, April 4 at the Raj Bhawan in Jammu", the spokesman said.
The BJP had yesterday sent its letter of support for the Mehbooba Mufti-led government in Jammu and Kashmir to the Governor.
"Today our party has sent a letter to the Governor stating that from our side we are ready to form the government whenever the PDP leadership decides to move ahead and we are ready to join them", BJP national General Secretary Ram Madhav had said.
(Reopen DEL53)
The Assembly also paid tributes to the people killed during last year's unrest in Kashmir Valley along with former Governor Lt Gen (retd) S K Sinha, former ministers and legislatures who passed away since the last session.
Soon after Assembly Speaker Kavinder Gupta read out the references on the demise of the former state Governor and other leaders who passed away, opposition demanded that tributes be paid to the civilians killed during the unrest in the Valley.
"As we pay tributes to the former Governor and the leaders who passed away, we should also pay tributes to the civilians who were killed in the over five months of the unrest in the valley," NC MLA Mohammad Shafi said.
Shafi claimed that all laws were ignored while dealing with the unrest and said it had dented the image of not only the state government but also the entire country in front of the whole world.
The opposition leader demanded that an inquiry be held into the "excesses" committed and the guilty be identified and action taken against them.
"It is important if we have to restore the faith of the people in democracy," Shafi said.
The Congress leader said the five months of turmoil in Kashmir should not be called an unrest or law and order problem but a "mass uprising".
"It would be wrong to call it unrest or law and order problem, but a mass uprising. Why did it happen? It happened as the psyche of the people of Kashmir was hurt due to the unholy alliance. Burhan Wani was just a trigger," Jora said.
He demanded that the House also pay tributes to the personnel of the security forces who lost their lives in the insurgency-related incidents in the state.
The BJP demanded that the House should also pay tributes to the people who lost their lives in the cross-border firing.
Independent MLA Engineer Rashid said the people who lost their lives in the unrest in the Valley died "demanding plebiscite".
"Hold plebiscite to resolve Kashmir issue. If you agreed to pay compensation to the family of Khalid Muzaffar Wani then you accepted that he was killed. You have lost in front of the ideology of Burhan Wani," Rashid said.
