Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who quit over allegations of involvement in a sex scandal, resumed office on Friday after the state governor rejected his resignation, officials said. The scandal, in which girls, some of them minors, were said to be supplied to politicians, bureaucrats and police officers sparked weeks of violent protests across the Himalayan region in 2006 after it was uncovered. Abdullah resigned on Tuesday shortly after a leader of the main opposition People's Democratic Party alleged in the state assembly that Abdullah was involved in the scandal. “Based on the information supplied to him by the Union Home Ministry, there is no basis for Shri (Mr) Abdullah seeking to resign,” state governor N.N. Vohra said in a statement. “I advise the chief minister to most vigorously devote himself to discharging responsibilities of chief minister, Jammu and Kashmir.” Abdullah, 38, had strongly denied any involvement in the scandal, but said he wanted to clear his name.”I believe in pious political ethics, upright character and moral principles,” Abdullah said after resuming his duties. He took office six months ago as the state's youngest chief minister. Guerrilla violence has significantly fallen in the state since India and Pakistan began a slow-moving peace process in 2004, but militants and police are still engaged in almost daily encounters in the Himalayan region.
