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| Presence of 'Chipku' irks others at Fairview | | |
Hyder Ali
Early Times Report
srinagar, July 26: Amid the ongoing unrest in Kashmir, the chronic presence of a minister at the private office of Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti, here has irked his colleagues and bureaucrats alike, who have nicknamed him "Chipku", meaning sticker in local parlance.
His detractors lament that he has been habitually "over interfering, trying to poke nose in every development, whatever the government discusses or decides upon".
Sources said minister leaves his residence immediately after offering the pre-dawn Fajr prayers only to make it to the Fair View Villa, Mehbooba's residence and private office, on the heels of picturesque Zaberwan Hills, as early as possible.
Insiders said he keeps sitting in the lawns or in the office, and the moment Mehbooba starts her public dealings for the day, he is the first to rush in to be seated there.
His colleagues say the minister has been upholding this tradition since 2003 when late Mufti Muhammad Sayeed was elected as the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir for the first time. Since then he has been reaching the Fairview early in the morning during "times of crisis".
Nowadays given the unrest, as Mehbooba manages most of her work from her residence, the minister remains in attention there, almost for the whole day, till public dealings are over.
But his presence has left many others including his party colleagues and ministers, uncomfortable. Citing a Kashmiri maxim, a minister said: "He is trying to be witness to everything; Harfas Gawah Ti Myandis Sharik. This not fair. What if we have to talk something confidential with the Chief Minister and we don't want his presence?"
A senior official said he had gone to visit Chief Minister only to share some confidential information with her. "But I found him sitting there keeping ear to every word anyone spoke… I felt uncomfortable and didn't share the confidential details which I wanted to convey," sources quoted the official as having said.
Many in the party believe that his undue interference in all party and government matters is undesirable. He is simply misusing the reputation he enjoys to be privy to everything. "This is against the protocol and thus we have nicknamed him 'Chipku' though if he wears a hat he will resemble superstar Amitabh Bachan of recent flim Piku," said some Peoples Democratic Party leaders, asking not to be identified.
Despite repeated attempts the minister couldn't be contacted for comments. |
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