NEW DELHI, Feb 24 : India's ruling Hindu nationalist party will for the first time govern the country's only Muslim-majority state of Kashmir under a power-sharing deal with Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), officials said Tuesday.
After months of negotiations following an election in December, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the regional rival PDP have agreed to form a coalition government in the state, where rebel groups have been fighting Indian rule since 1989.
BJP president Amit Shah announced the deal after meeting PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti in New Delhi, saying the two parties had resolved most of their differences. 
"In a few days, Jammu and Kashmir will have a BJP and PDP alliance government," Shah told reporters.
Standing alongside Shah, Mufti said the two parties have formed an agenda "keeping in mind the development and aspirations of the people of Jammu and Kashmir" state.
"This alliance is not for power-sharing but it is to win the hearts and minds of the people of Jammu and Kashmir," she said.
Details of the coalition are expected to be announced in coming days after Modi meets regional political leaders.
The BJP won 25 seats at the elections to Kashmir's state assembly in December, a feat unthinkable just a year ago. But the Hindu nationalists fell short of a majority, as did the PDP which took 28. The strong showing was seen as the BJP extending its grip on the country after Modi's landslide general election victory in May.    ?AFP