Kashmir gets a largely powerless government 5 years after India stripped its special status

Associated Press

SRINAGAR, India (AP) — Leaders of Kashmir’s biggest political party have been sworn into office to run a largely powerless local government for the first time after India stripped the region of its special status five years ago. The swearing-ins followed a recent election in the disputed region. National Conference leader Omar Abdullah will be the region’s chief minister after his party won the most seats. It has support from India’s main opposition Congress party, although Congress decided not to be a part of the new government. The vote was the first in a decade and the first since Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist government scrapped the Muslim-majority region’s long-held semi-autonomy in 2019.