Will UPA get rid of Omar Abdullah as J&K chief minister?

There are differences in the UPA government on whether to remove Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) chief minister Omar Abdullah from his post.

Of late, the Centre has been thinking whether getting rid of Omar will help tide over the crisis in the Valley, where 60 people have been killed in clashes with security forces in the past two months.

Most of the people’s anger is directed at chief minister Omar Abdullah because of his “insensitive” handling of the situation after the first death in Valley on June 11.

There are indications that the possibility of imposing Governor’s Rule (its President’s Rule in other states, but Governor’s Rule in J&K due to its special status) has reportedly not found favour with home minister P Chidambaram. There is a feeling in North Block that such a move would result in the Centre being held responsible for everything, since there will be no buffer in the form of the state government.

Abdullah’s removal from chief ministership is a talking point in the government and in the Congress party. Some Congress leaders are strongly in favour of continuing the Congress-National Conference alliance in J&K, but without Abdullah.

Since chances of his father and Union minister Farooq Abdullah replacing Omar are very slim, efforts are on to persuade them to suggest a candidate from the National Conference (NC) to replace Omar.

People in Omar’s party admit it would be a difficult for them to look beyond the duo. The moot point is whether they should back someone outside the Abdullah family. The chief minister’s post has traditionally remained a family domain ever since the founding of the party by former J&K chief minister Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah.

J&K Congress leaders had been making a strong case for the party to head the coalition, but that seems unlikely now, Union health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad is not keen to return to the hot seat. The other nominee is former Union minister Saifuddin Soz, which is unlikely to be accepted by NC.