Kashmir Impulse Desk
Srinagar, Oct 24
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah met Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Saturday and said his government would expand and reshuffle its Council of Ministers (CoM) within the first two to three days of next week.
CM Omar told reporters after the meeting at Lok Bhavan in Srinagar that he had asked LG Sinha to schedule the exercise for early next week.
“I requested time from him for the expansion and asked him that in the first two to three days of next week, I will carry out the expansion and certain changes in my Council of Ministers,” he said.
The CM said the LG would set a time for the exercise but did not disclose the names of legislators likely to be inducted or the portfolios that might change hands.
The proposed expansion comes as the National Conference (NC)-led government prepares to alter the composition of its ministerial team.
The CM was sworn in in October 2024 alongside five ministers, giving the government scope for further appointments within the applicable legal limit.
Under Section 53 of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, the CoM, including the chief minister, cannot exceed 10 percent of the elected assembly’s total strength.
With 90 elected members, the maximum permitted strength is nine.
CM Omar said he had also used the meeting to enquire about LG Sinha’s health after the LG had been unwell in recent weeks.
He said there were several issues on which the elected government needed to consult the LG periodically.
About the delegation of powers under the National Dental Commission Act, 2023, to LG and administrators of Union Territories for establishing state dental councils and regulating local dental healthcare, the CM said the government needed to examine which authority had jurisdiction over the matter.
He suggested reporters direct further questions to Health Minister Sakina Itoo after her return from Singapore.
CM Omar also expressed concern about Kashmiri pilgrims stranded in Saudi Arabia amid flight cancellations, saying travellers from several Indian states were facing difficulties returning home.
Although flights were operating, sharply higher fares had made alternative bookings unaffordable for many passengers who had initially purchased cheaper tickets, he said.
The J&K government would approach the Ministry of External Affairs to seek assistance, the CM said.
If the central government could not provide financial support for tickets or repatriation, the administration would consider using its own budget.
On reports of alleged Chinese patrolling deviations along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh, CM Omar declined to comment, saying the matter fell outside his government’s direct jurisdiction following Ladakh’s separation from Jammu and Kashmir in 2019.
He said questions on the issue should be directed to the LG Ladakh or the central government.
