Omar Abdullah sworn in as J&K CM

CONG STAYS AWAY FROM GOVT FOR NOW

- VINAY KUMAR

• Chooses Jammu's Surender Choudhary as his deputy, says he wants inclusive govt

National Conference leader Omar Abdullah took oath as the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday, heading the first elected government in the Union territory since 2019 when Article 370 was abrogated. The NC's alliance partner Congress is staying away from the government for now.

As Jammu and Kashmir turned another page in its troubled history, Lt Governor Manoj Sinha administered the oath of office and secrecy to Abdullah and five ministers, including Surender Choudhary from Jammu who is deputy chief minister.

Choudhary is a former member of the PDP and the BJP who was chosen by Omar Abdullah to be his deputy. Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday chose party leader Surender Choudhary from Nowshera in Jammu as his deputy, saying he did so to give a voice to people of the region and make his government inclusive.

>> Choudhary is a former member of the PDP and the BJP who was chosen by Omar Abdullah to be his deputy

>> The five ministers sworn in were Choudhary, Sakina Masood (Itoo), Javed Dar, Javed Rana and Satish Sharma -- three from Jammu and two from the Kashmir Valley, a clear effort to assuage some of the apprehensions of people in Jammu

>> Rana and Sharma are also from Jammu region. Itoo, the only woman minister, and Dar are from the Valley. While Abdullah took his oath in English, Choudhary did so in Hindi

>> After taking charge, Abdullah orders no 'green corridor' or traffic stoppage for him