Mamata congratulates Omar Abdullah on being sworn in as J&K CM

Kolkata, Oct 16 (PTI) West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday congratulated Omar Abdullah on being sworn in as the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir and described his return to the chair for the second time as “historic”.

National Conference leader Omar Abdullah was sworn in as the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday, the first elected government in the Union territory since 2019 when Article 370 was abrogated.

“I congratulate Mr Omar Abdullah @OmarAbdullah on his being sworn in as the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir today. This is his second stint at the helm of public life in the state, but the juncture today is more historic,” Banerjee posted on her X handle.

She went on to state that Omar Abdullah’s return to the chair of the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir was “triumphal” and congratulated the people of the state.

“I welcome his triumphal return through the elections, which truly constitute the greatest festival of democracy. I congratulate the real architects of the festival, i. e. the people of Jammu and Kashmir, in this festive moment of theirs,” she added.

Lt. Governor Manoj Sinha administered the oath of office and secrecy to Abdullah, who takes over as chief minister for a second term and is the third generation of the Abdullah family to occupy the office — after his grandfather Sheikh Abdullah and father Farooq Abdullah.