J-K cabient expasnion in next few days

After being deferred several times in the past,the much-awaited Cabinet expansion of the Omar Abdullah-led coalition government is likely to take place in next few days.

After being deferred several times in the past,the much-awaited Cabinet expansion of the Omar Abdullah-led coalition government is likely to take place in next few days. The two ruling parties National Conference and Congress have reportedly finalized the names of party legislators who will be given Cabinet berths in the upcoming expansion.

Sources said the NC leadership,including Omar Abdullah and Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy,Farooq Abdullah are meeting Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and state Congress President Saif-u-Din Soz in Srinagar to give final shape to the expansion,which is expected to take place in next few days. Farooq Abdullah who is also the NC President arrived in Srinagar on Tuesday and discussed the issue with top party leaders.

Sources said the expansion was likely to take place on June 25 but J-K Governor Narendra Nath Vohra is out of the state for three days on personal grounds. The expansion will now take place after the Governor returns to the state,they said.

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The NC-Congress Coordination Committee has already held several deliberations in the names of the MLAs to be included in the Cabinet. The Congress party has almost got the nod from the party chief Sonia Gandhi about the names that are to be included in the expansion.

Sources said 14 new ministers seven each from the two parties are to be inducted into the Cabinet,which has strength of 10 at present. The Congress leadership,it is learnt,has also decided to give Cabinet berth to former minister and MLA Tangmarg,Ghulam Hassan Mir. The Congress after stiff opposition from the party leaders has reportedly decided not to give the ministerial berth to Hakeem Mohammad Yaseen who had supported NC candidate in the recent Parliament polls.

The rape and murder of two young women in Shopian had earlier delayed the expansion of the Cabinet since the government was busy trying to restore normalcy in the Valley after days of protests over the mishandling of the incident.

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