Sakeena Itoo, Jammu and Kashmir’s lone woman minister: Know who are CM Omar Abdullah’s 5 cabinet colleagues

National Conference leader Omar Abdullah took oath as Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir in Srinagar today, October 16. Five ministers—two from Kashmir and three from Jammu—also took the oath of office on the occasion.

In Omar Abdullah, Jammu and Kashmir has got first chief minister after the six-year-long Central's rule. The last chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir before Omar was his rival and People's Democratic Party (PDP) chief, Mehbooba Mufti, until 2018.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) withdrew its support from its coalition government with Mehbooba's PDP paving way for the President's rule in the erstwhile state. 

The 5 Ministers

Omar's cabinet has five cabinet ministers, including four from the National Conference (NC) and one independent MLA. The four NC leaders who took oath on Wednesday are Surinder Choudhary, Javed Rana, Javed Dar, and Sakina Itoo – the lone woman minister. Satish Sharma is the independent MLA in Omar's cabinet.

The Congress, which contested the polls in alliance with the NC and won 6 seats, decided to stay out of the government until statehood is restored for Jammu and Kashmir.

Surinder Choudhary - Deputy CM

NC leader Surinder Choudhary defeated Ravinder Raina, the BJP president of Jammu and Kashmir, by over 7,000 votes in assembly polls from the Nowshera seat in Jammu. Choudhary, who is the Deputy Chief Minister under Omar Abdullah, is a former member of the Legislative Council.

Before joining the NC, Choudhary was with the PDP, which he left in March 2022 to join the BJP. He quit the BJP and joined the NC in July 2023.

Sakina Itoo: The lone woman MLA

Sakina Itoo is a senior NC leader who was a minister in the erstwhile state. She won from the DH Pora assembly segment in South Kashmir's Kulgam district, polling 36,623 votes and defeating Gulzar Ahmed Dar of the PDP by over 17,000 votes.

Sakina's father, Wali Masood Itoo, was also an NC leader who served as the speaker of the Jammu and Kashmir legislative assembly. Wali Masood Itoo was assassinated by militants in the 1990s.

Itoo is the only woman minister in Omar's cabinet. Three women MLAs won the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections.

Javed Ahmed Rana - Represents STs

Javed Ahmed Rana won the assembly polls from Mendhar's seat in Jammu, which was reserved for Scheduled Tribes. He has previously served as a member of both the Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council in the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir.

Rana polled 32,176 votes, nearly 14,000 more than the BJP's Murtaza Ahmed Khan, who finished second in the elections.

Rana was born in Kalaban village in Poonch district. He has a BA degree, after which he graduated in law at the University of Jammu in 1989.

Satish Sharma: Independent MLA

Satish Sharma won the Chhamb seat in Jammu as an independent MLA. He was one of the many independent candidates who pledged their support to the NC-Congress alliance after the October 8 results.

Sharma defeated BJP leader Rajeev Sharma by 6,929 votes in the Chhamb seat. Sharma is the son of the former Lok Sabha Member of Parliament Madan Lal Sharma. The Late Madan Lal was a veteran Congress leader who twice won the Jammu-Poonch Lok Sabha seat.

Javed Ahmed Dar - Face from North Kashmir

Javed Dar is a senior NC leader who was a minister under the first Omar Abdullah-led dispensation during the Congress-NC coalition government.

Dar won from Rafiabad constituency in North Kashmir polling 28,783 votes. He defeated Yawar Ahmad Mir from the Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party.