New Delhi: The young, charismatic heir of a political dynasty in Kashmir appeared set to head a coalition state government with Congress party, in what is seen as giving hope to a region beset by separatist rebellion.
Omar Abdullah met Congress party head Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi on Tuesday, after his National Conference party, which wants greater autonomy but rejects independence for Kashmir, became the biggest party in state polls that ended last week.
Despite a boycott call by separatists, the election had a turnout of more than 60 per cent, though many saw it as a vote for better governance rather than acceptance of Indian rule.
Kashmir is divided politically between separatist groups and mainstream parties like the National Conference that support links with India. So the turnout was a boost for New Delhi, which grappled with huge anti-India protests this year.
"It is going to be a government of partnership. We have an equal stake in the improvement of the lot of the people of Jammu & Kashmir," Abdullah told reporters on Tuesday.
The 38-year-old's appointment is seen as perhaps healing decade-long divisions amid signs that many people were tired of an insurgency that has killed more than 47,000 since 1989.
"I think he is the leader who can heal the wounds of young Kashmiris. He is young and understands the aspirations of an angry young generation," said Asiya Habib, a 24-year-old Kashmiri student.
England-born Abdullah was sent to Kashmir in 2002 to revive his ailing party, which had lost popularity under his father Farooq, the outgoing chief minister at the time. The former junior minister showed his credentials in a brainstorming speech in defence of secularism in parliament earlier this year, when a row over the government transfer of forest land to the Amarnath shrine in the state sparked Muslim anger.
Abdullah has good connections with Congress's top brass and is said to be a friend of another member of a political dynasty, Rahul Gandhi. The Kashmiri politician is a much more acceptable choice than his father, who came under fire in the past for his outspoken advocacy of bombing nuclear-armed Pakistan, analysts say.
"It's a very good move. When a young man takes charge, it always gives hope," said Amulya Ganguli, a political analyst. The Congress party will also benefit from the alliance in Muslim-majority Kashmir as a way of beefing up its support among India's minority groups, as the ruling coalition prepares for national elections due by May, analysts said.
"Congress will showcase this as an example that it's a plural party," said Mahesh Rangarajan, a political analyst. Violence in Kashmir, claimed by India and Pakistan but ruled in part by both, has fallen significantly since the two countries began peace talks in 2004.
India has imposed a pause in that dialogue after last month's Mumbai attacks, which it blames on Pakistan-based militants.
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