No big bang swearing-in for Mehbooba Mufti

SRINAGAR: This time around, the swearing-in ceremony of PDP-BJP coalition government in J&K is likely to be a low-key affair, even as PDP considers it as new beginning with Mehbooba Mufti. For BJP, it is just an extension of the alliance it had with late Mufti Muhammad Sayeed.

The oath-taking ceremony, as per sources in PDP and BJP, is likely to take place in a relatively small gathering at Raj Bhawan in Jammu, instead of Zorawar Singh stadium, where the ceremony took place last year in presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Sayeed.

The delay in the ceremony, sources in both the coalition partners, claim, is partly due to Assam elections, where the first phase of polling is on April 4, and the state BJP’s last minute negotiations demanding two more ministerial berths.

“We want to continue with the vision for development Mufti Sayeed had for J&K. It is a continuous process for us,” BJP’s state president Sat Sharma told ET. Many senior BJP leaders, including Ram Madhav, are busy campaigning in Assam.