The ruling Peoples Democratic Party-Bharatiya Janata Party coalition government in Jammu and Kashmir have formed a 10-member coordination committee to ‘ensure that the agenda for the alliance is implemented within the defined timeframe and all the policy issues adhered to in letter and spirit’.
The formation of the coordination came days after the coalition government assumed office in Jammu and Kashmir.
The committee to be headed by senior BJP leader and state Deputy Chief Minister Dr Nirmal Singh will have 4 members from the 2 coalition partners.
The PDP will be represented on the committee by its president Mehbooba Mufti and senior party leaders Muzaffar Hussain Baigh, Tariq Hamid Karra and ministers Naeem Akhtar and Abdul Rahman Veeri.
The other representatives of the BJP include the state Health Minister Lal Singh and Jugal Kishore.
The earlier National Conference-Congress coalition headed by Omar Abdullah too had a coordination committee headed by the then Congress president, Saif-ud-din Soz.
The PDP-BJP coalition government had a rough start and was bedevilled by controversies after the Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed credited Pakistan, militants and separatists for the smooth conduct of the state assembly polls in the state.
The release of Masarat Alam, a separatist leader who was the face of 2010 unrest in Kashmir which claimed 112 lives also rocked the coalition boat in its initial days.
The two parties have drafted a Common Minimum Programme to guide the coalition in the state.
The coordination committee will meet at least once a month or on need basis, an official statement said.
“The coordination committee will ensure smooth functioning of the alliance and the PDP-BJP coalition government, and may suggest from time to time various initiatives to be taken for the overall wellbeing of the people of the state,” the statement added.
The first meeting of the coordination committee is scheduled to be convened in Jammu on March 27, it said.
