Apart from these serious handicaps, Omar Abdullah’s style of governance too has come in for some criticism within the first few weeks. Unable to resist the Congress or his own party’s old guard, he has brought in an educated young businessman-turned-legislator as his political adviser with minister of state status. Though a political adviser’s job is primarily to be the interface between the public and the chief minister, his work seems more administrative than political. Yes, the individual in question has been an important part of Omar’s core team, and his media manager for several years. And it is understandable that Abdullah wants people he trusts close — but for the NC, he remains an outsider and is not part of the party structure. This appointment, and others such, have started giving rise to disillusionment within the NC.

Although it is very early to assess the functioning of the Omar Abdullah led the NC-Congress coalition government, there is an immediate need for a serious introspection by both the Congress’s top leadership and by Omar so that these initial missteps do not cause faith in the new government to falter. It has been after decades that J&K has witnessed an overwhelming people’s participation in the elections, which were peaceful and fair. A failure for this coalition government will have consequences more serious than ever.

muzamil.jaleel@expressindia.com