Mufti forms ministerial group on alliance

In the backdrop of rising controversies over core issues between PDP and BJP, the coalition government in Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday constituted a five-member ministerial group to oversee the implementation of the ‘Agenda of the Alliance’ in the state.

The group headed by Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh will oversee the implementation of the various components of the ‘Agenda of the Alliance’ of the PDP-BJP government in the state.

An official spokesman said the group was formed on the recommendations of Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and it will include PDP ministers Haseeb A Drabu and Abdul Haq Khan and BJP ministers Sukhnandan Kumar and Chering Dorjey, besides Nirmal Singh.

“The group has been authorised to visit New Delhi and to call on the Prime Minister and meet other senior Union ministers for resolution of issues relating to implementation of various aspects of the Agenda of the Alliance of the coalition government. The ministers are likely to travel to New Delhi next week to hold meetings with senior Union ministers,” he said.

On the administrative side, a cell is being created in the General Administration Department which will maintain necessary record as regards time-bound implementation of the ‘Agenda of the Alliance’ and to take follow-up action on the meetings held by the group, he added.

Some of the points of ‘Agenda of the Alliance’ include to create an environment of peace, certainty and stability in the state, to facilitate and help initiate a sustained and meaningful dialogue with all internal stakeholders, which include political groups irrespective of their ideological views and predilections, to de-notifying disturbed areas which will as a consequence enable the Union government to take a final view on the continuation of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) in these areas.
It also focuses on protecting and fostering ethnic and religious diversity.