J&K's New Deputy CM Kavinder Gupta's Shocker on Kathua Rape: 'Minor Case...Should Not be Hyped'
"The incident in Kathua is a small matter...It should not be given much hype," the Deputy CM said.
Srinagar, April 30: Minutes after taking oath, Jammu & Kashmir's new Deputy Chief Minister Kavinder Gupta issued a shocking and insensitive remark over the rape and murder of an eight-year-old nomadic Muslim girl in Kathua. Kavinder called it a "minor case", asking the media not to create further "hype".
"The incident in Kathua is a small matter...It should not be given much hype," the Deputy CM said on being asked about his reaction to the rape case which shook the conscience of the state.
Kavinder, who was the Speaker of the J&K Assembly, resigned yesterday after being chosen for elevation. The 63-year-old represented the Gandhinagar assembly seat in the J&K assembly.
Apart from Kavinder, other new faces inducted into the Mehbooba Mufti cabinet include BJP MLAs from Sambha, Kathua and Doda - Rajiv Jasrotia, Devinder Kumar Manyal and Shakti Raj, respectively.
Meanwhile, one incumbent BJP Minister Sunil Sharma, who is also the party's state unit in-charge, has been elevated to the Cabinet rank.
On the other hand, the new faces in the Ministry from the PDP include Mohammed Khalil Band, MLA from Pulwama, and Mohammed Ashraf Mir, MLA from Sonwar.
The swearing in-ceremony was held in Srinagar, the summer capital of the state. From the BJP high-command, MoS, PMO Jitendra Singh and party general secretary Ram Madhav attended the event.
On the Ministry reshuffle, Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti said it was planned exercise and not linked to any particular case. "A new team has come. The old team had also done good work. The new team has young and educated people and I hope they will work better," the J&K CM added.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 30, 2018 05:26 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).