The Congress has decided not to participate in the new Jammu and Kashmir government, despite its alliance with Omar Abdullah’s National Conference (NC) during the recent elections. Instead, the party will extend outside support to the new administration, according to sources.
Congress declined an offer of one ministerial position in the upcoming government. However, senior leaders, including Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, will attend the swearing-in ceremony, where Omar Abdullah will take the oath as Chief Minister alongside eight ministers.
Omar Abdullah will be the first elected Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir in a decade, following the NC’s strong performance in the September-October elections, securing 42 of the 90 seats. The Congress, however, fell short of expectations, winning only six seats compared to 12 in the previous 2014 elections.
This decisive victory allowed the NC to claim the dominant position in the alliance and choose the Chief Minister, with NC patriarch Farooq Abdullah naming his son Omar for the role. The party’s influence was further bolstered by the support of four independents and an Aam Aadmi Party legislator, who aligned with the NC, rather than the Congress-NC alliance.
The results have put additional pressure on the INDIA alliance led by Congress, with allied parties like Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena faction raising concerns about Congress’s handling of regional partnerships, especially with crucial state elections looming.
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