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Srinagar : Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister and National Conference Vice President Omar Abdullah on Saturday asserted that the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood cannot be made dependent on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) forming the government in the Union Territory, stating that the Centre must fulfil its constitutional commitment without imposing political conditions.
Addressing a gathering of National Conference workers and supporters on the 26th death anniversary of Begum Akbar Jehan Abdullah (Madar-e-Meharban) at Hazratbal, Omar Abdullah announced that the National Conference will hold a peaceful protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on July 20 to press for the immediate restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir.
Paying glowing tributes to Begum Akbar Jehan Abdullah, Omar described her as a towering leader who stood firmly with the people during some of the most difficult chapters in Jammu and Kashmir’s political history, saying her legacy of courage, sacrifice and public service continues to inspire generations.
Reaffirming his party’s commitment to restoring statehood, Omar said the National Conference had exercised patience for nearly two years in the hope that the Union Government would honour the assurances repeatedly given before the Supreme Court and in public.
“Our patience should never be mistaken for weakness. We chose dialogue over confrontation because we believed the promises made to the people would be honoured. However, when commitments remain unfulfilled, democratic protest becomes our constitutional right,” Omar said.
The Chief Minister also levelled serious allegations of attempts to destabilise the National Conference by engineering defections through financial and political inducements.
He claimed that an NC MLA from Jammu was allegedly offered between ₹20 crore and ₹30 crore, a ministerial position, and even an assurance that Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood would be restored if he left the National Conference and joined the BJP.
“Such attempts are an insult to the democratic mandate and reflect a complete disregard for the integrity and conscience of elected representatives,” Omar said.
Referring to the Supreme Court proceedings on Article 370, Omar stated that the Union Government itself had laid down a three-stage roadmap comprising delimitation, Assembly elections and restoration of statehood.
“Delimitation has been completed and Assembly elections have been successfully held. The people have delivered a clear mandate. There is now no justification for delaying the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood,” he said.
The Chief Minister further alleged that the delimitation exercise was politically structured to favour the BJP but asserted that the electorate decisively rejected such attempts through the democratic process.
Questioning the functioning of the elected government, Omar said if major administrative decisions continued to be controlled from the Raj Bhavan instead of the elected administration, the very purpose of conducting Assembly elections stood defeated.
“If governance continues to remain under the exclusive control of Raj Bhavan, then what was the purpose of holding elections and forming an elected government?” he asked.
Drawing a comparison with Ladakh, Omar observed that while the Centre was engaged in discussions over constitutional safeguards for Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir was still awaiting the restoration of its statehood despite repeated commitments.
He said the issue had been consistently raised with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and several senior Union ministers, but every meeting concluded with assurances that statehood would be restored at an “appropriate time.”
“The people have every right to ask when this so-called appropriate time will finally arrive,” Omar remarked.
Throwing an open challenge to the BJP-led Centre, Omar said if the government’s policy was to restore statehood only after the BJP formed the government in Jammu and Kashmir, it should state so openly instead of keeping the people in uncertainty.
“If that is your policy, then have the courage to publicly declare that Jammu and Kashmir will not regain its statehood unless the BJP comes to power here,” he said.
Concluding his address, Omar Abdullah reiterated that the National Conference would continue its peaceful and democratic struggle until Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood is fully restored.
“Our demand is clear, constitutional and unwavering—restore the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir. We will continue our democratic movement until the promise made to the people is fulfilled,” he said. (KNC)
