Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Nov 2: Ruling Alliance partner BJP today began brainstorming session in Leh to finalize name of its first ever Chief Executive Council (CEC) for Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC), Leh, while the Election Authority notified that elections for the CEC would be held in the Council complex, Leh at 3 pm tomorrow after the oath of all 26 newly elected members.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, who was scheduled to attend the CEC election in Leh tomorrow, has deputed PDP president Mehbooba Mufti and Education Minister Nayeem Akhter to join the oath taking ceremony of the first BJP CEC in Leh since 1995 when the Council had come into existence.
Mehbooba and Nayeem along with BJP national general secretary Ram Madhav and BJP Incharge Jammu and Kashmir Avinash Rai Khanna will reach Leh tomorrow morning while top brass of the BJP including Deputy Chief Minister Dr Nirmal Singh, State party president Jugal Kishore Sharma, organizing secretary Ashok Koul, BJP MP from Ladakh Thupstan Chhewang, Cooperatives Minister Chering Dorjey, BJP Incharge for Leh elections Sat Sharma CA, MLA and Munish Sharma reached Leh this morning and held hectic consultations with 18 newly elected BJP Councilors and other senior party leaders to finalize name of the CEC.
Deputy Commissioner Leh, Prasanna Ramaswamy, who is Election Authority for the LAHDC Leh and also serves as Chief Executive Officer to the Council, told the Excelsior that he has fixed 3 pm tomorrow as scheduled time for all 26 newly elected Councilors to meet in the Council complex, where they will be delivered the oath followed by election of the new CEC.
The BJP with 18 seats and two-thirds majority in the House was sure to bag post of the CEC. Congress with 5 seats will be the main opposition. NC has two seats while one Independent has also been elected to the Council.
Ramaswamy said after election of the CEC he can nominate four Executive Councilors any time.
Official sources said the top BJP leadership met with all 18 newly elected Councilors and other senior party leaders in Leh to finalize the name of the CEC after which the party has shortlisted four names. A final decision was likely to be taken tomorrow after arrival of BJP national general secretary Ram Madhav and BJP Incharge Jammu and Kashmir Avinash Rai Khanna.
Sources said the BJP has decided that only election of the CEC will be held tomorrow while nomination of four Executive Councilors will take place later. As per the Constitutional provisions, the CEC has the powers to nominate four Executive Councilors, Incharge of different departments. The CEC has the status of Cabinet Minister while the Executive Councilors have the rank of Deputy Ministers.
Sources said the BJP first wants the Chief Minister, who holds charge of the Ladakh Affairs Department, to nominate four Councilors to the LAHDC Leh as it wants one of the PDP nominated Councilors to be taken as Executive Councilor to make it BJP-PDP Council in Leh like their coalition Government in the State.
The LAHDC Leh has strength of 30 members. While election was held for 26 seats, four Councilors with equal rights of voting are nominated by the Chief Minister. As the PDP had drawn blank in the elections, one of its nominated members was likely to be taken as the Executive Councilor, sources said.
Sources said though the BJP has won two-thirds majority on its own in the Council winning 18 out of 26 seats and would also get one or two leaders nominated to the Council in the quota of four, it has decided to incorporate at least one PDP nominated Councilor as the Executive Councilor to ensure that the two parties formed the Council in Leh in perfect harmony.
The Chief Minister, they said, had agreed to join the CEC election ceremony in Leh on November 3 along with the BJP leaders but due to preoccupation, he has now decided to depute PDP president Mehbooba Mufti and Education Minister Naeem Akhter to Leh tomorrow. They will address the BJP Councilors and the gathering and assure full development of Leh district under the command of new Council and the PDP-BJP Government.
BJP sources said though first time Councilor from Thiksay Dr Sonam Dawa was front runner for the post of the CEC, the names of three Councilors, who have been elected for second consecutive term to the Council were also being considered for the coveted post. They included Lobzang Nyantak (Upper Leh), Dorjay Mutup (Kungyam) and Gyal Punchok Wangyal (Sakti). They were Councilors in the outgoing Council also when BJP had only four Councilors as against 22 of the Congress.
The LAHDC Leh had come into existence in 1995 and this was fifth election to the Council. This is, however, for the first time when the BJP will rule the Leh through the Council.
The election process for the LAHDC Leh was completed by the Election Authority on October 28 with submission of names of all 26 Councilors to the Ladakh Affairs Department of the State Government, headed by Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed.
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