SRINAGAR: Troubled northern state of Jammu and Kashmir came under governor’s rule last night, following the fall of Ghulam Nabi Azad-led coalition government in the state.
Governor N.N. Vohra, issued a proclamation last evening, “in exercise of powers conferred by Section 92 of the Constitution of Jammu and Kashmir, and assumed, with immediate effect all the functions of the government of the state and all powers vested in or exercisable by anybody or authority in the state, other than the powers vested in or exercisable by the High Court.”
India imposed federal rule after the state government fell over a controversial transfer of land to a Hindu shrine trust that sparked days of rioting in the Muslim-dominated region. The government land move sparked some of the biggest protests from Muslims last month since a separatist movement broke out in the region in 1989. At least six people were killed in the protests and hundreds injured.
According to a Raj Bhavan spokesman, the governor also dissolved the Legislative Assembly in exercise of the powers conferred upon him by the Constitution of Jammu and Kashmir.
The spokesman said that after the acceptance of resignations of the chief minister and his council of ministers, the governor “initiated a consultative process and met leaders of various political parties and groups in the assembly with a view to arriving at a firm assessment whether any of the parties/groups were inclined and could join hands to form a stable government of the state.”
In the face of violent protests from Muslims, the Kashmir government withdrew its decision of transferring land to build shelters for Hindu pilgrims visiting the Amarnath cave to pray by an ice stalagmite considered sacred.
