I’ll reach out to opposition for cooperation,says Omar Abdullah

He resumed work a day after Governor N N Vohra rejected his resignation letter saying there was no basis for the allegation by PDP that he was involved in the sex scandal.

Omar had on Tuesday tendered his resignation to the Governor asking him to go into the allegation levelled by PDP leader Muzaffar Hussain Beigh and accept his offer if there was any basis to the charge.

Dressed in a Pathani suit,Omar was greeted by dozens of his staff at the secretariat. “I am not the one to dwell in the past. I look towards the future. I have never conducted myself or my politics with a view to extracting revenge and therefore what is done is done”.

The 39-year-old Chief Minister held his usual morning meeting with some of his cabinet colleagues and later chaired a cabinet meeting.

“I had to take a difficult decision in order to clear not only my own name but also to establish some respectability for politics and politicians in the J and K.”

Omar said,“We have come to fulfill the aspirations of the people of the state rather than fight among ourselves. My conviction is that only a person with an unblemished character has the moral right to hold such positions from where he can serve people with full devotion and sincerity.” He said the personal attack by PDP would not deter him from seeking active cooperation from the opposition to promote peace and progress in the state.

About the ongoing assembly session and his approach towards the opposition,he said,“we have been mandated by the people to solve their problems and address their difficulties”.

A healthy government requires a “healthy opposition”,Omar said while noting that “people have not elected us to throw mud at each other and indulge in character assassination. The 60 to 70 per cent voter turnout in the assembly elections last year has indicated the public faith in the legislators. We have to come to their expectations”.

While turning down his resignation offer,the Governor had advised Omar to most vigorously devote himself to discharging responsibilities as Chief Minister.