Omar sworn in as Jammu and Kashmir chief minister

Jammu, Jan 5 (IANS) Omar Abdullah Monday took oath as the eighth chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir along with 10 ministers at this winter capital of the state.

Governor N.N. Vohra administered the oath of office and secrecy to Abdullah and his council of ministers.

After Omar of the National Conference (NC), Tara Chand of the Congress was the first minister to take oath. He is tipped to become deputy chief minister in the NC-Congress coalition government.

With 28 seats, the NC emerged the largest party in the 87-member assembly after the seven-phase election in November-December. The Congress bagged 17 seats.

Omar Abdullah, the youngest chief minister in Jammu and Kashmir, is also the third to hold the post in his family after his grandfather Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah and father Farooq Abdullah.

The 38-year-old Omar had been minister of state in the 1999-2004 National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee.