The Adnan Sami’s much hyped show in Srinagar was though expected to generate excitement and enthusiasm among youth in Kashmir valley but it snowballed into a major political controversy. As National Conference Working President and former chief minister Omar Abdullah pointed out that thin attendance in the concert infuriated the singer, Adnan Sami took Omar head on. It would have better for former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to talk about the failure of Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti as minister incharge tourism as she failed to put the right persons at the right time. The failure of Mehbooba government to arrange audience for the show has to be shared by the Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti as minister incharge tourism and the bureaucrats holding key positions in the tourism department. Unfortunately the government rendered tourism department headless after the vacation of the post of Commissioner/ Secretary Tourism by the superannuation of M H Malik. Before thinking about the conduct of a cultural show by Adnan Sami like singer of great repute the government should have appointed a suitable officer as Secretary Tourism who would oversee the arrangements for the conduct of the show by Adnan Sami. Since the senior officers of the tourism department including Director Toursim were not working under the command and control of a secretary level officer the failure apparently can be attributed to poor coordination which was visible during the conduct of this cultural show. So the officers of the tourism department have not let down Chief Minister in the conduct of cultural show by Adnani Sami but the absence of a secretary level officer that resulted in the break down of the coordination between different wings of tourism department is the main reason for the failure of the Adnani Sami show organized with lot of excitement and enthusiaism in Srinagar.
Omar’s criticism on the failure of the show was very much genuine but he missed the opportunity of targeting the right person at the right time.
The blame could have been put on the administrative secretary can be straightway put on the Chief Minister who did not both even to assign the additional charge of tourism to administrative secretary of any other department. The conduct of Adnan Sami show in the absence of a full fledged administrative secretary in the tourism department was totally an unwise decision and Chief Minister as minister incharge tourism owes a lot of explanations for the failure of the show. The only mistake former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah committed in responding to the failure of the show was his critical remark against Adnan Sami. Had Omar Abdullah talked about the administrative failure of the Chief Minister in assigning the right job to the right persons in the tourism department in the absence of a full fledged administrative secretary, then former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah would find all the singer lowers and youth of the Kashmir valley on his side. Omar’s criticism on the failure of the show was very much genuine but he missed the opportunity of targeting the right person at the right time.
