Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Feb 16: Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti would expand her ten and half month long Council of Ministry tomorrow afternoon.
The oath ceremony has been scheduled for 12.30 pm at Raj Bhavan tomorrow, official sources said.
While induction of PDP MLA from Amirakadal in Srinagar district, Altaf Bukhari is imminent, there was still suspense as to whether he will be lone inclusion in the Council of Ministry or any other party legislator would also be sworn-in along with him.
Ahead of the Cabinet meeting, Mehbooba held detailed separate inter-actions with Finance Minister Dr Haseeb Drabu, Rural Development Minister Abdul Haq Khan and Revenue Minister Basharat Bukhari at her residence this evening. She will leave for Srinagar after the oath ceremony.
Altaf Bukhari was Works Minister in Mufti Sayeed Government but was dropped by Mehbooba along with three other party Ministers when she took over as the Chief Minister after the death of Sayeed.
Governor NN Vohra will administer oath of office and secrecy to the new Minister or Ministers in a brief ceremony.
Excelsior had exclusively reported about expansion of Mehbooba Mufti Ministry on February 17.
As reported, the expansion will be confined to the PDP only while BJP Ministers and their portfolios will remain unchanged.
This is first expansion of PDP-BJP coalition Government headed by Mehbooba Mufti since she had taken over reign of affairs in the State on April 4, 2016.
There are only two vacancies in the Council of Ministry and both of them belonged to the PDP as BJP has exhausted its quota of 11 Ministers in the total strength of 25. The PDP presently has 12 Ministers including the Chief Minister and has two vacancies.
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