*Ministry strength down to 24
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Feb 7: Minister of State for Health (Independent Charge) Shabir Khan, who represented Rajouri Assembly constituency for the Congress, resigned today from the Council of Ministry after police registered a First Information Report (FIR) for attempt to outrage modesty of a woman against him on the basis of complaint of a lady doctor at Shaheed Gunj police station in Srinagar district.
The problems for Mr Khan have compounded with Srinagar police issuing summons to Mr Khan to appear before the police tomorrow. The summons have been sent to SSP Jammu Atul Goel for execution as the former Minister had his official residence at Gandhi Nagar.
Official sources said SSP Srinagar Amit Kumar has summoned Shabir Khan for appearance at Shaheed Gunj police station, where the FIR of molestation charges was registered against him yesterday. The summons have been sent to the SSP Jammu for handing it over to Mr Khan.
In the summons, the former Health Minister has been asked to appear before the Srinagar police tomorrow.
Sources said Mr Khan would be arrested as soon as he appeared before the police.
“Let us see. If he didn’t appear, only then we will initiate other legal courses of action,” sources said.
The summon was issued soon after Chief Justice MM Kumar refused the permission to Mr Khan to file bail application at Jammu wing and asked him to file it before the competent bench at Srinagar.
Advocates BS Salathia and Meenakshi Slathia appeared before the Chief Justice on behalf of Mr Khan.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah tweeted this evening that he had received the resignation of Shabir Khan and was forwarding it to Governor (NN Vohra) for acceptance.
Late in the evening, the Governor accepted the resignation of Shabir Khan reducing strength of the Council of Ministry to 24.
Omar has not given additional charge of Health Department to any Minister so far, sources said, adding that the charge was likely to go to a Congress Minister named by the party high command.
Official sources told the Excelsior that soon after the reports poured that the Srinagar police had registered a case of attempted molestation against Shabir Khan on the basis of a complaint lodged by a lady doctors, PCC (I) chief Prof Saif-ud-Din Soz directed Mr Khan to resign.
Though Shabir Khan remained incommunicado, he faxed his resignation to Chief Minister Omar Abdullah at his official residence from an unknown place. Omar had reached here this afternoon from Hyderabad, where he had gone to attend a conference. Soon after getting the resignation, the Chief Minister forwarded it to the Governor for acceptance.
“The letter of resignation of Mr Khan, Minister of State, recommended and forwarded by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, has been accepted with immediate effect by Governor NN Vohra,” an official handout of Raj Bhawan said.
The Chief Minister would hold additional charge of the Health Department.
An official handout issued by PRO to Shabir Khan said: “Mr Khan today tendered his resignation from the Council of Ministers on the advice of party high command”.
Describing the allegations leveled against him as “false, fabricated and politically motivated”, the handout said the charges were aimed at maligning his image, popularity and political career.
“The Minister has stepped down on moral ground to ensure free, fair, impartial and transparent enquiry/investigation so that the truth comes out,” the handout added.
Police had yesterday registered a case against Mr Khan after a lady doctor alleged that the Minister had called him to his office in Srinagar and attempted to molest her.
A case was registered under Section 354 RPC (assault or criminal force on a woman with the intention to outrage her modesty) and Section 509 RPC (word, gesture or act intended to outrage the modesty of a woman) against him.
According to the complaint lodged against him, Mr Khan, a Congress leader and MLA from Rajouri, allegedly tried to make advances towards the woman and molest her when she visited his office in the State Secretariat at Srinagar, the summer capital of the State, on January 28, when Mr Khan was in Srinagar on winter Secretariat duty.
The woman said in her complaint that she felt uncomfortable and quickly left the room after the Minister allegedly tried to molest her.
Mr Khan, however, remained incommunicado throughout the day today but there were reports that he had reached Jammu from Manjakote, where he was last night and had spoken to the Excelsior denying all charges against him. He has reportedly explained his version to the party high command.
The sexual harassment charges against Mr Khan followed by his resignation came just three days ahead of the start of Legislature session on February 10, which has given the Opposition one additional point to score over the Government especially the Congress. An opposition leader has already stated that if a lady doctor was not safe in the office of the Health Minister, where else she would be (safe)?
Mr Khan has become fourth Minister in National Conference-Congress Government to resign or lose portfolio on various charges, three of whom belonged to the Congress.
Works Minister and Congress MLA from Inderwal, Ghulam Mohammad Saroori was dismissed from the Cabinet after a case pertaining to impersonation of her daughter in MBBS/BDS examination scam in ASCOMS Batra in August 2010 was handed over to the CBI. However, the CBI had later given clean chit to Mr Saroori. Saroori’s Works Department had remained with the Chief Minister till it was given to another Congress leader and MLA Doda Abdul Mujeed Wani on January 15, 2013.
Next was the turn of Education Minister and former Pradesh Congress chief Peerzada Mohammad Sayeed, who escaped removal from the Ministry but had to lose his main portfolio of Education following involvement of his foster son in examination scam. Mr Sayeed is now virtually the Minister without portfolio as he holds the charge of insignificant Public Enterprises and Floriculture Departments.
In August 2013, Minister of State for Home and Independent Charge of Industries and Commerce Sajjad Ahmad Kitchloo, an NC MLA from Kishtwar, had to resign on the allegations that he didn’t handle August 9, 2013 riots in Kishtwar properly despite his presence in the town. However, Mr Kitchloo was re-inducted into the Ministry on December 21 after Justice (Retired) RC Gandhi Commission gave him a clean chit of the charges.
Mr Khan has become fourth Minister to resign in the present NC-Congress dispensation but first on the charges of sexual exploitation.
With the resignation of Shabir Khan, the strength of Council of Ministry headed by Omar Abdullah has come down to 24 from 25.
There are 17 Cabinet Ministers in the State including nine from National Conference, seven from Congress and one from DPN. There were seven Ministers of State, all with independent charge, four of whom belonged to Congress and three to National Conference. With Mr Khan’s resignation, the strength of Ministers of State has come down to six.
PTI adds from New Delhi:
The ruling National Conference and its ally in Jammu and Kashmir, Congress, today said action should be taken against State Minister Shabir Ahmad Khan if the molestation charges against him are found to be true.
“If it (charges) are true, action must be taken as per the law,” Union Minister and National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah told reporters outside Parliament House.
He said crimes against women like molestation and rape are not acceptable and “we are all against any such thing.”
Union Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said that if the complaint is found to be true, action will be taken according to the law.
“If this is true action will be taken and he will not be Minister anymore. One has to find whether it is true or not. If it is found true, action will be taken and the law will take its own course,” Azad said.
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