Srinagar, November 27: Days after expressing their dissent against Jammu & Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik over his "dysfunctional fax machine", former chief ministers Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti lauded the Governor after he reportedly claimed to have defied instructions from Delhi on government formation.

"My compliments to Governor Malik for not looking to Delhi & for not taking their instructions thereby stopping the installation of a government of the BJP and it's proxies formed by horse trading, defections and use of money," said Omar, the vice president of National Conference. How Governor's 'Malfunctioning' Fax Machine Added to the Anti-Climatic Political Drama.

"I really don't know what to make of Governor Sb revelations in Gwalior. We know the BJP & it's proxies were desperate to form a government through horse trading & use of money but we've also never known a politically appointed governor going against the wishes of the Centre (sic)," Omar furthered added on Twitter. Satya Pal Malik Says Delhi Wanted Him to Make Sajjad Lone CM of J&K, Backtracks.

Addressing a function in Gwalior on Saturday, the Governor reportedly said he dissolved the state Assembly as he did not want to go down in history as a "dishonest man".

During a pre-convocation academic conclave of ITM University in Gwalior, Malik said,"Delhi ki taraf dekhta toh muje Lone ki sarkar banana padhti aur mein ithihas mein ek bayiman aadmi ke tor pe jata...(Had I looked to Delhi, I would have had to install a government led by Lone, and history would have remembered me as a dishonest man)."

"Therefore, I ended up the matter. Whosoever wants to scold, can do so now but I am convinced that whatever I did, was right," he said in his address after noted journalist Ravish Kumar had pointed out in his speech about faulty fax machine.

In a tweet Tuesday, Mehbooba Mufti said it was good to see that the governor refused to "take dictation from Delhi".

"Leaving aside the fax machine fiasco, good to see that governor Sb refused to take dictation from Delhi, rather opted for dissolution of assembly. This could be unprecedented, given the story of democracy in the state," she said.

(With PTI inputs)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 27, 2018 11:31 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).