Following President Ram Nath Kovind’s approval, Jammu and Kashmir was placed under the Governor’s Rule on Wednesday, a day after the Bharatiya Janata Party decided to pull out of the Peoples Democratic Party-led state government and Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti tendered her resignation.
Governor NN Vohra, after consultations with all major political parties on formation of government in the state, sent a report to Kovind on Tuesday seeking his approval to imposition of Governor’s Rule in J-K.
Vohra made the recommendations under Section 92 of the Jammu and Kashmir Constitution, which allows the state to be placed under the Governor’s Rule for six months. The state can be placed under the President’s Rule if an elected government fails to take office within these six months.
READ | J-K under Governor’s Rule, eighth time in four decades
This is for the eighth time that Jammu and Kashmir has been placed under the Governor’s Rule, and the fourth time that Vohra will be directly running the affairs of the state administration.
Here is a timeline of Governor’s Rule in J-K in the last four decades.
March 26, 1977: Governor’s Rule was first imposed in the state on this date by the then Governor LK Jha, when Congress withdrew support to the minority government headed by Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah.
March 1986: Congress withdrew support to the GM Shah-led state government setting the stage for imposition of Governor’s Rule for the second time.
January 1990: The Governor’s Rule was imposed when the then chief minister Farooq Abdullah resigned after the appointment of Jagmohan as the state’s Governor.
October 2002: Farooq Abdullah refused to continue as the caretaker CM following his party’s defeat in the assembly elections. This was when NN Vohra took over as the Governor for the first time.
June 2008: Governor’s Rule was imposed again after PDP withdrew its support to the Ghulam Nabi Azad-led government.
January 2015: With his party failing to get a majority in the state elections, Omar Abdullah refused to continue as caretaker CM, and the state was placed under the Governor’s Rule for the sixth time.
January 7, 2016: Governor’s Rule was imposed for the seventh time after the death of former Chief Minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed on January 7, 2016.
June 20, 2018: Vohra assumed reins of the administration as Governor’s Rule was imposed following the BJP’s decision to withdraw support to the Mehbooba Mufti-led PDP government int he state.