The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) yesterday pledged support to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), paving the way for the formation of a new government in Jammu and Kashmir under Mehbooba Mufti’s leadership.
Once sworn-in, she will be the first woman chief minister of India’s only Muslim-majority state.
The BJP also elected Nirmal Singh as its leader in the Jammu and Kashmir assembly and nominated him for the deputy chief minister’s post in the new PDP-BJP alliance government.
Mehbooba was on Thursday elected leader of the PDP’s legislature party.
The state has been without a government ever since the death of PDP patron and chief minister Mufti Mohamed Sayeed on January 7 at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi due to multi-organ failure.
BJP state president Sat Pal Sharma said the BJP had decided to extend support to Mehbooba Mufti, the daughter of Sayeed, to head the new PDP-BJP government.
“We have to discuss certain issues before both of us visit the governor together to stake claim,” he said. He said it may take “two-three days” before the new Jammu and Kashmir government is formed.
Later, a joint co-ordination committee meeting of the two alliance partners was held here yesterday evening.
Sources said the PDP and BJP leaders met at the residence of BJP leader and former state minister Bali Bhagat.
“Senior leaders Muzaffar Hussain Beigh, Tariq Hameed Karra and Haseeb Drabu represented the PDP at the joint co-ordination committee meeting while from BJP its state president Sat Pal Sharma, Jugal Kishore and Nirmal Singh were present.
“After the meeting, BJP leaders appraised BJP national general secretary Ram Madhav about their deliberations with PDP leaders,” BJP sources said.
The sources said that the leaders of the alliance partners will call on governor N N Vohra in two to three days jointly to discuss government formation.
The two parties were scheduled to meet the governor separately yesterday, but this did not materialise.
Earlier, Madhav told reporters here that the leaders of the BJP and PDP “will have a meeting between ourselves before going to meet the governor”, adding “when they go to meet the governor, will be decided”.
Nirmal Singh also served as the deputy chief minister in the Sayeed-led PDP-BJP coalition government that lasted 10 months.
The state has been under Governor’s Rule since January 8.
Jitendra Singh, the minister of state in the Prime Minister’s Office, also attended the party meet in Jammu. He represents the Kathua-Udhampur Lok Sabha seat for the BJP.
Following yesterday’s developments, Mehbooba also deferred her scheduled meeting with the governor.