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Congress activists demand change of guard in Kashmir

     Srinagar: Hundreds of Congress activists took to streets in Srinagar on Tuesday demanding a change of guard in the state. Members of the youth wing of the Congress party hailed federal minister Ghulam Nabi Azad as the new chief. "We would like to appeal to Sonia Gandhi to listen to the demands of the Congressmen in Jammu and Kashmir that a Congress chief should be appointed after three years of PDP governance. We demand Ghulam Nabi Azad to be appointed as the state chief," said Farooq Ahmed, President, Youth Congress. Even as top leaders are holding meetings in New Delhi, coalition partners are at loggerheads demanding fair representation and removal of Sayed. Bhim Singh, leader of Panthers Party, lashed out at the Congress saying they were responsible for bad governance in the strife- torn state. "If at all there's a coordination meeting, we have not been informed. This is despite the fact that we were promised that we would be a party when it was formed. I would in fact say that the years of violence and strife in the valley is because of the Congress party and its governance. And now it wants to force upon their decisions on us, for that matter even by prolonging Mufti's tenure," Singh told reporters in New Delhi. Meanwhile, Congress party said it needed more time to consult senior leaders before accepting chief minister's post in the state. The Congress party is a partner in the Jammu and Kashmir government, headed by the People's Democratic Party (PDP). According to an earlier agreement, the state was to have a Congress Chief Minister after Mufti Mohammad Sayed's three-year tenure to be ended on November 2.