Srinagar, October 27: Leader of Opposition in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly and BJP leader Sunil Sharma on Tuesday said he would stand by legislators who missed out on ministerial berths in the cabinet expansion, while placing the onus on Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to address their grievances.
His remarks came shortly after four ministers — Ali Mohammad Sagar, Shamima Firdous, Mir Saifullah and Altaf Kaloo — were sworn in by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha at Lok Bhavan in Srinagar, taking the Council of Ministers to its maximum permissible strength of nine, including the chief minister. Independent minister Satish Sharma was dropped in the reshuffle.
Congratulating the new ministers, Sharma said they should focus on governance and public concerns rather than the political disputes surrounding the government. “They should work hard for the people of Jammu and Kashmir and come out of the political tussle the government is currently caught in to serve the common masses,” he told reporters as per Kashmir Convener.
Turning to those left out of the expansion, Sharma said, “I will wipe their tears, but it is Omar Sahab’s responsibility to wipe those tears. We will also wipe them.”
The expansion has brought the National Conference leadership’s choices into focus, with Sharma’s remarks underlining the disappointment among legislators who did not find a place in the new cabinet.
Asked about reports of differences within the government and speculation over its stability, the BJP leader advised patience. “Have patience, don’t be in a hurry,” he said, pointing out that barely an hour had passed since the swearing-in.
Sunil Sharma did not offer any immediate prediction on the government’s future, instead asking people to wait before judging the implications of the cabinet reshuffle.
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