Tassaduq set to be tourism minister

Amir Karim Tantray

Tribune News Service

Jammu, December 11

Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti is all set to induct her brother Tassaduq Mufti into her Cabinet as the Tourism and Culture Minister in place of her uncle Farooq Ahmad Andrabi, Peoples Democratic Party sources revealed.

This will give legal and constitutional cover to Tassaduq’s powers and authority as the coordinator of the Chief Minister’s grievance cell.

Sources said the ruling PDP had suggested that he be nominated to the seat in the Legislative Council that had fallen vacant after the resignation of Vikramaditya Singh. Vikramaditya, the eldest son of senior Congress leader Karan Singh, was nominated to the Legislative Council by Mufti Mohammad Sayeed soon after the formation of the PDP-BJP government. He resigned to protest what he had called the neglect of Jammu. His resignation from the Council was accepted by the Chairman of the House recently.

At the Political Affairs Committee meeting recently, senior party leaders had suggested that the Chief Minister, in order to silence the critics who had been questioning the authority and constitutionality of Tassaduq’s powers in issuing instructions to officials, it was imperative that he be given a constitutional position, though he is unofficially already in the government, sources said.

Mehbooba appears to have accepted the suggestion, they said.

Mehbooba made Tassaduq, a cinematographer by profession, join politics and appointed him as the coordinator of the Chief Minister’s grievance cell early this year.

Tassaduq was also to contest the Anantnag parliamentary elections after his sister vacated the Lok Sabha seat on her election to the Legislative Assembly to meet the constitutional requirement of becoming a member of either of the two Houses of the state legislature within six months of her becoming the Chief Minister.

Mehbooba was sworn in as the Chief Minister on April 4, 2016, following the death of her father Mufti Mohammad Sayeed on January 7 last year.

Joined politics last year 

• Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti made her brother Tassaduq Mufti, a cinematographer by profession, join politics and appointed him as the coordinator of the CM’s grievance cell early this year 
• Tassaduq will be inducted into the Cabinet as the Tourism and Culture Minister
• He was to contest the Anantnag parliamentary elections after his sister vacated the Lok Sabha seat on her election to the Legislative Assembly