In a first, BJP ministers asked to quit

RESHUFFLE ON CARDS

18/04/2018

JAMMU, Apr 17: Days after its two lawmakers had to quit, BJP ministers in the Mehbooba Mufti government have been asked to send their resignations to the party to prep for a reshuffle that has been on the cards for some time.
Sources said the ministers had been told to send across their resignations at meetings held last week by BJP strategist Ram Madhav when he was in Jammu to meet lawmakers after the party's two ministers had to exit the Mehbooba Mufti government.
"There is no threat to the coalition government," a source told JOURNEY LINE.
Mehbooba Mufti's People's Democratic Party, has been in power in the state with support from the BJP, which has 25 legislators in the 89-seat Jammu and Kashmir assembly. The PDP, the largest group, has 28 legislators.
The resignations are being given to the state party president, not J&K chief minister Mehbooba Mufti, meaning there may yet be room for negotiations between the two parties.
As per BJP sources, the resignations are to effect a complete cabinet reshuffle in J&K with the BJP taking the first step.
A central minister confirmed the development regarding the resignations, saying that the party (BJP) was to be put first.
The BJP has been under pressure from the opposition parties and civil society ever since Singh and Ganga took part in a rally against the chargesheet in the rape-and-murder of an eight-year-old girl in Kathua, which was seen by many as support for the accused in the case. The two ministers subsequently resigned.
While Singh embarked on a roadshow earlier today, the BJP's state unit later in the evening asked all its nine remaining ministers in the two-year-old government, led by PDP's Mehbooba Mufti, to tender their resignations to enable the party to bring in fresh faces in the state government.
According to top state government sources, a reshuffle is now likely to take place later this week in the government.
The state can have a maximum of 25 ministers including the chief minister. Currently, 14 portfolios are with the PDP and the remaining with the BJP.
Singh trained his guns on Mufti and demanded that she should resign, saying it was her "biggest failure" and if she has "wisdom and conscience", she should resign.
"If two ministers can sacrifice their posts in the interest of peace, those who are actually responsible for creating such an atmosphere should listen to their conscience," Singh said targeting the PDP leader.
Internet services in Jammu were snapped by the police as several rumours were floating in the city. "Some of the rumours and misinformation campaign has potential of spreading communal tension in the city, therefore, we snapped it," a senior police officer said, adding a decision to restore the services will be taken tomorrow.
The BJP ministers in the Jammu and Kashmir government are Dr. Nirmal Kumar Singh - Deputy Chief Minister & Minister for Power Development and Housing and Urban Development
Mr. Bali Bhagat - Minister for Health and Medical Education
Mr. Chering Dorjay - Minister for Cooperatives and Ladakh Affairs
Mr. Sham Lal Chaudhary - Minister for PHE, Irrigation and Flood Control.
Mr. Abdul Ghani Kohli - Minister for Animal, Sheep Husbandry and Fisheries
Mr. Sunil Kumar Sharma - Minister of State for Transport (Independent charge), Revenue, Public Works (Roads & Buildings), Rural Development & Panchayati Raj, Agriculture Production, YSS
Ms. Priya Sethi - Minister of State for Education, Technical Education, Culture, Tourism, Department of Horticulture, Floriculture and Parks.
Mr. Ajay Nanda - Minister of State for Finance and Planning, Information Technology, Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, CA and PD, Tribal Affairs, Relief & Rehabilitation.
Earlier, Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti today assigned the charge of the two departments held by former ministers Chander Prakash Ganga and Lal Singh, both of whom resigned recently, to the state's Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh.
J&K Governor N N Vohra had yesterday accepted the resignation of Lal Singh and Ganga, who had participated in a rally in support of a CBI probe in rape and murder case of an eight-year-old girl in Kathua district.
I do hereby assign the charge of the Departments of Industries & Commerce and Forest, Ecology & Environment to Dr Nirmal Kumar Singh, Deputy Chief Minister in addition to the subjects already assigned to him, said an order issued by the chief minister here today.
Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh is presently holding the charge of the Power Development and Housing & Urban Development departments.
Earlier, the charge of the departments of Industries & Commerce was with Ganga while Lal Singh was held the Forest, Ecology & Environment portfolio.

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