Poll season: It’s ‘gupshup’ time in HP secretariat

With the announcement of the state assembly elections expected anytime now, Himachal ministers are busy campaigning in their constituencies. The state civil secretariat wears a deserted look, as most bureaucrats do not show up post-lunch. Those who stay back in office prefer political gupshup (tete-a-tete) with colleagues over several rounds of coffee or tea to pushing files. And, the visitors are just left in the lurch. All one can hear them grumbling outside the secretariat. before the concert. The tweet by a journalist showed rows of empty seats, calling the show a “bad PR for Mehbooba government’’. Omar tweeted hoping the seats get filled soon. “Thats a pity i hope the seats are filled now. For an evening they can let music transport to a more peaceful,’’ he posted. “The empty seats and delayed start are showing what Kashmir for what it is -- empty hotels, poor governance and general public despondency,’’ Abdullah tweeted again after an agency tweeted MOS, home, Kiren Rijiju saying the concert is “showing Kashmir for what it is”’. In a series of tweets, Abdullah criticised the ministry for making the “concert a propaganda’’. The tweets didn’t go down well with Sami, Pakistani singer who was recently been Indian citizenship. He took on Abdullah, asking him why is the concert “unnerving him”’. “Bro Ur a former CM. U shouldn’t be unnerved by a music concert.u obviously have bad sources who lie to U. Here are the photos #grow up’’, tweeted Sami. The tweet got the two into full blow spat, with Sami calling Omar a “sadistic loser” who has “a fickle mind”. The ex-cm underplayed the comments saying he “has just wished the seats are filled”.