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| India-Pakistan |
| Omar Abdullah sworn in as IHK chief minister |
| 2009-01-06 |
| Omar Abdullah was sworn in as the 'youngest' chief minister of Indian-held Kashmir (IHK) amid tight security on Monday. "I swear to uphold the sovereignty and integrity of India," he said, wearing a long black coat and white shalwar at the swearing-in ceremony in Jammu. Omar's National Conference, which backs greater autonomy but rejects calls for independence, emerged as the single biggest party in elections that ended in December. "(Omar) cannot ignore the massive freedom demonstrations. If he is sincere he should help address the aspirations of Kashmiris," said Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, chief of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference. Congress party chief Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul attended the ceremony in Jammu. Omar is the grandson of IHK's first political leader after 1947, Sheikh Abdullah. The England-born Abdullah was sent to Kashmir in 2002 to revive his ailing party, which had lost popularity under his father Farooq, the outgoing chief minister at the time. The former junior federal minister showed his credentials in a speech in defence of secularism in parliament earlier this year, when a row over the government transfer of forest land to a Hindu shrine in the state sparked Muslim anger. Omar is a more popular choice than his father, who came under fire in the past for his extravagant lifestyle and outspoken advocacy of bombing nuclear-armed Pakistan, analysts say. The National Conference won 28 of the state assembly's 87 seats, while the Congress Party bagged 17. |
| Posted by:Fred |