JAMMU, Feb 10: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today met Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi and discussed with him a host of issues including restoration of Statehood, security scenario, upcoming budget session of the Legislative Assembly and development works like Centrally Sponsored Schemes.
After the meeting, the Business Rules for jammu and Kashmir defining powers of the Chief Minister, his Council of Minister and Administrative Secretaries are expected to be released any time as all issues pertaining to the powers have now been settled.
“The Business Rules are being given final touches. Powers of all the stakeholders have clearly been defined and the Rules will now be out within the next few days,” official sources told the Excelsior saying the issue figured prominently in the half an hour long meeting the Chief Minister had with the Home Minister today.
A Cabinet Sub Committee drafted the rules. However, they have to be approved by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha. The Union Home Ministry had to study and clear the Rules after which they will be released, the sources said.
On February 16, Omar Abdullah Government will complete four months and in the absence of clearly defined powers, the governance has faced some problems. However, with release of the Business Rules, everyone in the Government will have his role known. Powers of the Chief Minister, Cabinet Ministers, Administrative Secretaries etc will be defined. Law and order, public order and All India Services are with the Lieutenant Governor.
Omar is reported to have taken up the issue of taking people of Jammu and Kashmir into confidence with the Home Minister and stressed that representatives of the people and his Government too should have a say in maintaining law and order.
In a post on X, the Chief Minister said he had a detailed and productive discussion on various matters concerning Jammu and Kashmir with Amit Shah. He mentioned the matters as restoration of Statehood, security, upcoming budget session of the Legislative Assembly and governance.
Omar reportedly briefed Shah about the situation in J&K after the two recent incidents — the death of a person by suicide in Kathua district, and shooting of a truck driver after he did not stop at a checkpoint in Sopore in North Kashmir.
After these incidents that took place on February 4 and 5, the Chief Minister had said that incidents like these “risk alienating the very people who we need to carry with us on the road to complete normalcy”.
“I have taken up these incidents with the Union Government & insisted that both incidents are inquired into in a time bound, transparent manner. The Government in J&K will also order its own inquiries,” Omar had said in a post on X.
The meeting came a week after Shah chaired two back-to-back meetings in two days where the security situation of J&K was discussed threadbare.
“The Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir @OmarAbdullah, called on Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation @AmitShah,” Shah’s office wrote on ‘X’.
Abdullah also discussed some changes in the industrial and tourism policies in order to incentivise manufacturing sector and bring more tourists into Jammu and Kashmir with the Home Minister.
Today’s meeting was Omar’s third engagement with Shah since taking over as the Chief Minister.\
It may be recalled that soon after assuming office, he met the Home Minister on October 23, 2024 during his first visit to New Delhi.
That meeting was primarily a formal introduction. Omar had briefed Shah about the situation and had exuded hope that J&K’s statehood would be restored soon.
On December 19, 2024, Omar met the Home Minister for the second time and “discussed the restoration of statehood for J&K, and the hurdles faced by the UT’s elected Government.”
Meanwhile, after taking a dig at Aam Admi Party (AAP) and Congress, who contested the Delhi elections as rivals, and lost to the BJP, Omar maintained silence on future of the INDIA bloc.
Replying to a query about INDIA bloc unity, Omar responded: “I have nothing to say about it. If the INDIA bloc convenes any meeting in future, I will discuss the issues there. If I say anything in the media, then my words are twisted.”
Asked about his recent sarcasm “Aur lado aapas mein” Omar said, “It was my reaction to poor results of Delhi elections.”
“I don’t want to discuss the reasons for the results here. If I have to discuss anything, I will discuss it in the INDIA bloc meeting,” Omar told reporters in a brief chat with media persons in New Delhi.
