Click to play videoSrinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Tuesday resigned from the post after a senior Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leader alleged that he was involved in the Srinagar sex scandal.
However, Governor NN Vohra refused to accept the resignation and asked Omar to stay on till the probe on the matter is over.
In his resignation letter, Omar had asked Vohra to initiate an enquiry into the allegations levelled against him within a specified time frame.
"I would be grateful if in a time bound manner you can enquire into the allegations levelled against me at the the earliest," Omar's political advisor Davender Rana quoted the Chief Minister as saying.
Omar had submitted a conditional resignation letter to the Governor and CNN-IBN has exclusive details of the letter that the J-K Chief Minister had sent to Governor Vohra.
The letter leaves options open for the Governor. Omar in his letter has asked for an investigation into Opposition's allegation that he was involved in the 2006 sex scandal.
Omar says if the charge is proved, he will quit office.
But the Governor while rejecting Omar's resignation asked him to continue till investigations into the sex scandal are over.
There was high drama in the Assembly when Omar said he would step down and not return till the allegations were proved wrong.
Members of his party, National Conference, surrounded him and tried to physically stop him from leaving, but a determined Omar walked out of the Assembly.
"I know it is a false allegation. I cannot work till I am proved innocent. It is a blot on my character,” Omar said.
"Any amount of investigation by the home department will not help. Till I am able to prove my innocence, I am going to give my resignation to the Governor," Omar told the State Assembly, a statement that shocked his party MLAs and ministers.
The whole drama began when PDP leader and former deputy chief minister Muzaffar Beig levelled the allegation that Omar was involved in the infamous Srinagar sex scandal.
He claimed he had a list of people involved in the scandal in which Omar's name figured.
“All we want is further investigation. I had initiated his inquiry by CBI. Unfortunately even CBI started dragging its feet. High ranking politicians’ names were also involved. CBI has given the first list of names. He is a suspect in the confidential court papers,” Baig alleged.
But later Beig told CNN-IBN Omar's name had figured in confidential court records as a suspect He pointed fingers not just at Omar but also his father and Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy Farooq Abdullah.
"The document we gave was presented before the Punjab and Haryana High Court by the CBI. It has names which didn't figure in the chargesheet but women named these people for having sexual contact with them. After investigations he maybe exonerated, his father Farooq may also be exonerated. His name also figures," claimed Baig.
CBI sources, meanwhile, said that Omar never figured as an accused in the case.
Congress in-charge of state Prithviraj Chavan had tried to stop Omar and asked him not to resign. The Congress alleged it was a trap to get Omar out of office, party sources said.
Omar became the Chief Minister of the National Conference-Congress coalition government in January 2009.
The sex scandal had rocked Jammu and Kashmir in June 2006 after the arrest of a woman named Sabeena believed to be the kingpin of the racket.
Several senior politicians, top bureaucrats and police officers were accused of sexually abusing women and minor girls and forcing them into prostitution.
The CBI investigated the case and the report is now in the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
Omar, J-K's youngest Chief Minister has been under tremendous pressure since taking over the reins of the state earlier in the year.
He was under fire over the Shopian double rape and murder case where the PDP alleged that securitymen were the culprits. The rape and murder case led to widespread protests across the Kashmir Valley
Omar removed the Central Reserve Police Force from Baramullah and then reinstated them that led to differences with the Centre.
Politically, too, it has not been easy for the NC leader as many Congress leaders are still said to be close to their former friends in the PDP.
Moreover, many of his party leaders are also reportedly unhappy with portfolio allocation in the state Cabinet.
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