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The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Friday dismissed National Conference leader Omar Abdullah's allegations regarding a proposal to task the Chief Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir with altering the transaction of business rules to reduce the powers of the elected Chief Minister and transfer them to the Lieutenant Governor. The ministry labelled these claims as "misleading and speculative."
"Omar Abdullah's tweet is misleading and speculative. There is not even an iota of truth, as no such proposal exists. The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act of 2019, passed by the Parliament of India, provides for notifying the transaction of business rules, and these were duly notified in 2020. The people of Jammu and Kashmir have wholeheartedly supported the Government of India's efforts to establish a democratically elected government through a historic, free, and fair election process, which saw enthusiastic participation," Amit Shah posted on X. Earlier on Friday, National Conference (NC) vice-president Omar Abdullah accused the Centre of altering the government's business procedures. He claimed the BJP had instructed the Chief Secretary to amend the "transaction of business rules" to assign them to the Lieutenant Governor, having sensed electoral defeat. "The BJP has clearly accepted defeat in J&K. Why else would the Chief Secretary be tasked with changing the transaction of business rules to curtail the powers of the Chief Minister/elected government and transfer them to the Lieutenant Governor? This information has come to me from within the Secretariat. Officers would be well advised to resist any pressure to further disempower the incoming elected government," Abdullah posted on X. The Election Commission of India announced on Thursday that an overall voter turnout of 63.88 percent was recorded in the Assembly elections in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The poll panel reported a voter turnout of 69.69 percent in the third phase held on October 1. Phase 1 and Phase 2 saw polling percentages of 61.38 percent and 57.31 percent, respectively. The Jammu and Kashmir National Conference and Congress, partners in the INDIA alliance, jointly contested the assembly elections, while the PDP and BJP ran independently. The counting of votes will take place on October 8. (ANI)
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