Political activity to intensify in J&K after Aug 15th

14 Aug 2026, 19:26 by Northlines · Northlines

NC & BJP all set to grill each other

Arvind Sharma

JAMMU Tawi, Aug 14: As the government has informed that the 6^th Assembly session will be held from 21^st of next month onwards, the political activity in the Union Territory (UT) of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) is most likely to intensify after the Independence Day, with both the ruling National Conference (NC) and the opposition BJP gearing up for grilling each other.

The ruling National Conference is preparing for a possible expansion of the cabinet. The Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah, has already indicated that the cabinet could be expanded after Independence Day.

Meanwhile, the sources said that atleast three new ministers may be inducted into the J&K government.

At present, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, along with five other ministers, is part of the Council of Ministers.

As per the rules, the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly has 90 members/MLAs and the government can have up to nine ministers.

With the induction of three new ministers already being considered, changes in the allocation of departments are also expected.

There is speculation over which ministers may be relieved of certain departments as part of the reshuffle, which is also expected soon, as per the sources.

Congress, which is part of the ruling alliance, has so far maintained a cautious approach and has reportedly not agreed to join the Council of Ministers until Jammu and Kashmir is restored the Statehood.

Meanwhile, the opposition BJP is preparing to intensify its campaign against the National Conference-led government after Independence Day.

The party has planned a meeting of its leaders scheduled to be held in Srinagar on August 23, while the Assembly session is scheduled to begin on September 21.

The BJP is also preparing a strategy to corner the government during the upcoming session on several issues including regularization of daily wagers, free ration besides some other issues.

With the Cabinet expansion, possible departmental reshuffle and preparations for the Assembly session, Jammu and Kashmir is expected to witness heightened political activity in the coming weeks before the start of Assembly session.