New Delhi Imposes Direct Rule on Kashmir; Muslim Radicals Defiant

New Delhi assumed control Friday of Jammu and Kashmir state after the resignation of its unpopular chief minister, but Muslim radicals said the change would not affect their bloody campaign to end Indian control of Kashmir.

There were no reports of serious new violence or casualties in the state’s northern region, although police said minor bombings and arson persisted.

Prime Minister Viswanath Pratap Singh’s government declared “governor’s rule” in the troubled Himalayan state after the swearing in of a new governor, Jagmohan, in the winter capital of Jammu, 100 miles south of the summer capital of Srinagar.

Singh’s decision to name Jagmohan prompted the resignation late Thursday of Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah, who said he was not consulted on appointment of the new governor. The governor is the central government’s chief representative in the state.

Abdullah’s Cabinet also quit. The state assembly was not dissolved but placed under “suspended animation.”

The state’s predominantly Muslim Kashmir region has been rocked by an escalating campaign by Islamic militant groups to secede from predominantly Hindu India. Some groups demand independence, while others advocate accession to Pakistan, which disputes India’s claim to Kashmir.