SAYEED, MANGAT CLASH AT CABINET MEETING
JAMMU - Deputy Chief Minister Mangat Ram Sharma snubbed Chief Minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed at a cabinet meeting here Tuesday, telling him he was not a "headmaster" who could dictate terms to his seniors in politics.
Sharma walked out of the cabinet meeting in a huff, the second time he has done so in the past 16 months. He later flew to New Delhi, telling reporters he would apprise the Congress party leadership about Sayeed's "dictatorial behaviour".
Cabinet meeting was later postponed to April 22.
On Jan 24, almost in similar circumstances, Sharma walked out of a cabinet meeting on being overruled on the appointment of Kashmir's senior most Indian Administrative Service officer KB. Pillni as chairman of the State Public Service Commission.
Ultimately, Sharma had to relent and reconcile to the choice of the chief minister.
Tuesday's walkout followed a verbal duel between the two over the use of 'improper' language by Sharma while conversing with Chief Secretary Sudhir S Bellorla.
The meeting was to discuss a major administrative and police reshuffle in the state.
Sayeed termed Sharma's conversation with the chief secretary as 'improper.' "You should not use such language with the chief secretary," Sayeed told Sharma in the presence of the entire cabinet and some top officials
Sharma allegedly told Belloria ' kar do Jl' (do it) instead of ' kar deejlye' while marking the agenda for the day.
Sayeed corrected him in front of the cabinet after which the deputy chief minister replied that he did not have to be (taught how to deal with the bureaucracy.
Sharma told Sayeed: "I am senior to you in politics by 11 years. You cannot treat me like a headmaster, and I am leaving."
Sharma then burst out of the meeting Sayeed, the sources said, rubbed salt into Sharma's wounds by saying: "If you want t0 go, no one is going to stop you." He suggested that Congress President Sonia Gandhi should be informed about this incident. Chief Minister was quoted as saying. “How can the govt run amid this indiscipline?”
(Kashmir Observer, 22 April, 2005)