Journalism of Courage
As the term of National Conference – Congress coalition government in the state draws closer, Shabir Ahmad Khan becomes the third Congress minister who was forced to resign from the government. Khan on Friday put his papers after molestation charges by a doctor.
The resignation of minister at the time of elections has put Congress in the state on the back foot. The image of the party has received a setback not only in Kashmir but also in Jammu region.
In the previous government, two Congress ministers – Pirzada Mohammad Syed and Ghulam Ahmad Mir had to resign from the cabinet. Both are now cabinet ministers in the present government.
A year after NC and Congress coalition came to power in 2009, the then Roads and Buildings Minister, G M Saroori was forced to resign over the reports that his daughter qualified the medical examination after minister arranged a proxy candidate to write her exams in Jammu.
In 2012, the then Education Minister Pirzada Mohammad Sayed resigned after the J&K Police indicted him on charges of helping his son to qualify his Class X exam in 2009 through unfair means.
That time, the minister had sent his resignation to Congress president Sonia Gandhi instead of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah. However, Syed was asked to continue as Haj and Auqaf Minister.
At that time, many Congressmen wanted Syed to resign as there were corruption charges against the minister in the previous government when a sitting legislator alleged him of taking Rs 40,000 as bribe from his sister.
In the previous coalition government,the then Congress minister Ghulam Ahmad Mir had resigned when his name surfaced in the Srinagar sex scandal in 2006. However, Mir was given a cabinet berth in Omar led government again last year.
