Asif Iqbal Naik
Jammu, February 24; 2026: In a significant development on the concluding day of her tenure, the Chairperson of the District Development Council (DDC) Kishtwar, Pooja Thakur, inaugurated the newly constructed District Development Council building amid the absence of senior district officials.
The Deputy Commissioner Kishtwar, along with other key officers including the Additional District Development Commissioner (ADDC), who functions as the Administrative Head of the DDC, and the Assistant Commissioner Development (ACD) Kishtwar, did not attend the event. The occasion coincided with the last day of the incumbent DDC leadership’s tenure.
According to persons present at the spot, the building was found locked as no official representative from the district administration turned up for the scheduled programme. It is alleged that the lock of the premises was broken to facilitate the inauguration ceremony, following which the Chairperson, accompanied by the Vice Chairperson and other DDC members, formally declared the building open.
Meanwhile, an official source, speaking on condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to interact with the media, stated that no formal permission had been accorded for holding the inauguration function. The source termed the event “arbitrary” and said the administration does not recognise the ceremony.
“This building will be properly inaugurated by the competent authority in the near future,” another senior official informed, asserting that due process and official protocol would be followed before making the building operational.
The development has triggered debate in administrative and political circles, raising questions over protocol, coordination, and the circumstances that led to the parallel claims over the inauguration of the newly constructed DDC office.
