Examiner Bureau | Srinagar:
The National Conference’s cabinet reshuffle has triggered disappointment among some senior party leaders, with veteran MLA Mubarak Gul expressing frustration over being left out of the new ministerial team and Abdul Majeed Larmi saying, “My heart hurts” over his exclusion from the Omar Abdullah-led government.
The reactions came after four NC legislators—Ali Mohammad Sagar, Shamima Firdous, Mir Saifullah and Altaf Ahmad Kaloo—were sworn in as ministers at Lok Bhawan in Srinagar on Tuesday.
Gul, who has been associated with the party for decades, openly voiced his disappointment outside Lok Bhawan after the ceremony.
“I have attended 30 oath-taking ceremonies till now. Every time I was dropped, and today as well, I am being dropped,” he told reporters, expressing his frustration at once again missing out on a place in the Cabinet.
Larmi also conveyed his anguish over not being included in the expanded Council of Ministers, describing the decision as personally painful.
The exclusion of senior leaders has added an emotional dimension to the reshuffle, which was expected to accommodate new faces while balancing experience, regional representation and internal party considerations.
While the four newly inducted ministers took oath in the presence of Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, the reactions from Gul and Larmi highlighted the disappointment among party legislators who had hoped to secure a place in the government.
The reshuffle has filled vacant ministerial positions, but the expressions of discontent suggest that the leadership’s choices have not satisfied all aspirants within the party.
