Ruling PDP president Mehbooba
Mufti is set to be the first woman Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir,
succeeding her father Mufti Mohammad Sayeed who passed away today, with party
MLAs unanimously electing her as their leader and writing to Governor N N Vohra
in this regard.
A party delegation met the
governor at Raj Bhavan here and handed over the letter which says that the PDP
legislators back the 56-year-old Mehbooba to take over as the 13th Chief
Minister of the state, a senior PDP leader said.
He
said the selection of Mehbooba, a Lok Sabha member, as the leader of 28-member
PDP Legislature party was a unanimous decision.
The
party leader, however, did not specify the date or time for her swearing-in."It will follow in due
course of time as we are still in the process of performing last rites of our
beloved leader," the PDP leader said.
However,
Mehbooba's ascent to the post of the Chief Minister would require approval of
BJP, the junior coalition partner in the state government. Although no one from the BJP has so far opposed
Mehbooba's elevation, a final decision on the issue will be taken by the party
high command. In the 87-member J and K Assembly PDP won 28 seats and BJP 25
while opposition National Conference got 15 and Congress 12.
Mehbooba began her political career in 1996, joining
the Congress. In 1999, she was by her father's side as he broke away from the
Congress and launched the PDP. When the BJP-PDP formed an alliance early this year, she worked hard to
ensure that her father is accepted by the BJP as chief minister for a full
term, not on a rotational basis.
In 2004, Mehbooba contested
and won her first Lok Sabha election, from south Kashmir. In 2008, she contested and was
returned as MLA from Wachi segment of Shopian in south Kashmir when PDP bagged
21 seats but lost power to NC-Congress coalition. In 2014, she was yet again
returned as Lok Sabha member from south Kashmir.
Later in November-December Assembly elections, PDP got 28 seats and in March 2015 it formed its second government in Jammu and Kashmir---this time in an alliance with BJP.
Mehbooba has never lost an election from South Kashmir so far.
Later in November-December Assembly elections, PDP got 28 seats and in March 2015 it formed its second government in Jammu and Kashmir---this time in an alliance with BJP.
Mehbooba has never lost an election from South Kashmir so far.
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