IN THE DRIVING SEAT Will take over state affairs for the fourth time, touted to be the most difficult
1 SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir governor Narendra Nath Vohra took charge of the state’s administration for the fourth time on Wednesday, but rising local militancy might make his assignment this time more difficult than in the past, political leaders and analysts said.
“In the past three-four years Kashmir has changed a lot. It will need special efforts to calm tempers. The space for mainstream parties has shrunk and local boys have joined militancy,” said a senior National Conference (NC) leader who knows Vohra closely.
“Now it remains to be seen how south Kashmir will behave. And if something happens like killing of civilians or any big incident happens, governor Vohra and the Centre will also [sic] be responsible,” said the politician on condition of anonymity.
The state was put under Governor’s Rule on Wednesday after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) pulled out of the ruling coalition, forcing chief minister Mehbooba Mufti to resign.
“This is the fourth time Vohra is taking over affairs of the state. And this time it’s the most difficult assignment. Let us see how he uses his cards on the political and governance front,” said the editor of a Srinagar-based newspaper on condition of anonymity.
The 82-year-old Vohra’s second term as governor ends on June 27 but he is likely to get an extension in light of the Amarnath Yatra, which begins on June 28.
“It’s true Jammu and Kashmir will get a new governor but for the time being NN Vohra is the best choice and he will likely get an extension at least till Amargarh Yatra concludes,” said a senior BJP leader.
The central government’s priority is to ensure security for the yatra as militancy in south Kashmir has increased in recent months. Vohra, as head of the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board, has been successfully organising the Yatra. His knowledge about Kashmir and its security scenario has come in handy for the annual pilgrimage to the cave shrine.
“Jammu and Kashmir right now can’t afford to have a new governor who will need three to six months know the state,” said a bureaucrat. “Governor Vohra has experience and the Centre will try to use his expertise to get things in the state administration settled. So there is every possibility he will be asked to continue to run this state,” the bureaucrat added.
Leaders of mainstream political parties have faith in Vohra and almost every top leader of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Bharatiya Janata Party, National Conference and the Congress enjoys close ties with him.
Vohra, a veteran civil servant who has held different posts in the state and Centre, was appointed the state’s 12th governor in 2008. The United Progressive
Alliance government gave Vohra a five-year extension in 2013.
A Punjab cadre IAS officer, Vohra was appointed Punjab’s home secretary when the state was passing through a turbulent phase after Operation Bluestar in 1984. He played an important role in holding elections to the Punjab assembly in 1985 in the backdrop of Sikh militancy. After serial bomb blasts in Mumbai in 1993, Vohra was appointed Union home secretary (1993-94).
SALUTING THE BRAVEHEART
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman (second from left) with slain rifleman Aurangzeb’s family, in Poonch on Wednesday. Aurangzeb was abducted from Pulwama by terrorists and his bulletridden body was recovered on June 14. Sitharaman was accompanied by senior army officers and visited Salani village to offer her condolences, saying the family stood out as an inspiration for the entire nation. She met Aurangzeb’s father too, a former army man who reiterated his resolve to sacrifice his all to safeguard the integrity and sovereignty of the country.
