Immediately after this, Abdullah got up and said he could not continue functioning as the chief minister under such circumstances.

'After the proceedings of the house today, I will go to the governor and submit my resignation. I cannot work as the chief minister until my name is cleared from the list of the accused persons,' a charged Abdullah said.

After he left the assembly, his party members followed him out in a bid to persuade him to change his mind and not act in haste.

Abdullah went to his residence in Gupkar Road to mull his next move. His father Farooq Abdullah, the National Conference president and union minister for renewable energy, who happened to be in Srinagar and was returning to Delhi, turned back from the airport in view of the crisis. A final decision will be taken after consulting him, informed sources said.