J&K CM Omar to sack Roads Minister Saroori

NEW DELHI: J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has decided to sack Roads and Buildings Minister GM Saroori. The decision was taken after a bizarre resignation drama unfolded in the Capital when the IB was called in to track down the embattled J&K minister, who had gone underground after the Congress high command decided to ask him to resign following his daughter’s involvement in an impersonation scandal.

Mr Saroori, a close associate of Union minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, left for Jeddah to perform Umrah, apparently without mandatory clearances from the external affairs ministry.

Trouble started for Mr Saroori on August 21 when seven impersonators were arrested during a medical entrance examination at the Acharaya Shri Chander College of Medical Science.

One of the impersonators were allegedly taking the test on behalf of Mr Saroori’s daughter Huma Tabassum. Mr Saroori has been a dissident of sorts in the Omar government. The CM may not have been troubled by the scandal, and might even have been relieved to see the minister go.

Mr Abdullah waited for the Congress high command to reach a decision. While a decision was taken at 10 Janpath and Prithviraj Chavan, party general secretary in charge of J&K, was charged with conveying the news to Mr Saroori, the minister was nowhere to be found. Even the officers attached to him claimed that they did not know his whereabouts.

IB’s help was sought in finding the minister. The minister was then tracked down to the J&K House in Delhi. But Mr Saroori refused to take calls from Mr Chavan.

He then drafted a policeman to take a phone to Mr Saroori’s room and get him to come on the line. The move succeeded, and Mr Chavan told him that he would have to explain his role in the scam to the party leadership.

Mr Saroori maintained that he had nothing to do with the scam, and that he would be able to defend himself only after he returns from Saudi Arabia after performing Umrah.

Mr Saroori’s office issued a statement saying the minister was travelling to perform Umrah, and refuted reports that he has been asked to resign. This was seen as an open challenge to the Congress leadership and the message to sack him was conveyed to Mr Abdullah.