BJP to get Jammu and Kashmir Assembly Speaker's post

NEW DELHI: The post of the Speaker of Jammu and Kashmir Assembly will go to BJP with its MLA Kavinder Gupta likely to be the ruling PDP-BJP alliance's choice for the chair.

BJP sources said the two parties have worked out a power- sharing formula and a coordination committee, comprising four members each of BJP and PDP, will work together to ensure that there is no deviation from the formula and the Common Minimum Programme agreed upon by the coalition partners.

PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti will lead her party's nominees on the panel with her BJP counterpart to be Jugal Kishore Sharma.

As the alliance government was sworn in yesterday, 13 MLAs, with Sayeed as the Chief Minister, from PDP took oath alongside 12 MLAs from BJP and the Peoples Conference.

Although PDP has more Cabinet ministers than BJP in the government, the saffron party is likely to keep important portfolios like power and commerce and industry.