Srinagar, July 11: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Saturday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of attempting to destabilize the National Conference-led government, alleging that one of his party’s legislators from the Jammu region was offered between ₹20 crore and ₹30 crore, a ministerial berth and political assurances to defect in what he described as a failed bid to engineer a split in the ruling party.
Addressing a gathering after paying tributes to Begum Akbar Jehan at Naseem Bagh, Omar claimed the offer was allegedly conveyed through a Supreme Court lawyer associated with the BJP, who, according to him, assured the legislator that statehood would be restored if he switched allegiance. Declaring that the National Conference would not succumb to pressure or inducements, the Chief Minister warned the BJP against attempting to enter government through what he termed “the back door”, asserting that the party’s patience should never be misconstrued as weakness.
Turning his attack towards the Centre, Omar questioned why an elected government was being forced to stage a protest in New Delhi nearly two years after assuming office merely to seek restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood. He said he had deliberately adopted the path of dialogue instead of confrontation, despite being aware that the approach would invite political criticism within Jammu and Kashmir.
“I staked my political credibility on the assurance that the promises made to the people of Jammu and Kashmir would be honoured. I believed dialogue would succeed where confrontation would not. Unfortunately, our patience has been rewarded with continued delay,” he said.
The Chief Minister as per the news agency Kashmir News Trust reminded the Centre that it had assured the Supreme Court that statehood would be restored after the completion of delimitation and Assembly elections. Both processes, he said, had concluded, yet the commitment remained unfulfilled.
Questioning the delimitation exercise, Omar alleged that Jammu and Kashmir had witnessed a politically motivated exercise designed to benefit the BJP. Despite what he termed an attempt to tilt the electoral balance, he said the electorate had defeated those designs by handing the National Conference a decisive mandate.
“Our victory has become our punishment,” he remarked, questioning why elections were held if the intention was to continue governing Jammu and Kashmir through Raj Bhavan instead of respecting the mandate of an elected government.
Escalating his criticism, Omar alleged that the Centre had responded positively to political demands from Ladakh while ignoring similar concerns raised by the elected government in Jammu and Kashmir. He claimed that while Ladakh was being engaged on constitutional safeguards, Jammu and Kashmir continued to be denied even routine administrative powers, including the appointment of officers.
The Chief Minister said he had repeatedly raised the issue of statehood with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah but was consistently told that restoration would take place at an “appropriate time.”
“What is this appropriate time? Tell us what more remains to be done. If the appropriate time means the formation of a BJP government in Jammu and Kashmir, then say so openly before Parliament and the people,” he said.
Rejecting criticism over the National Conference’s decision to invite political parties and civil society members for the proposed July 20 protest at Jantar Mantar, Omar asserted that the struggle for statehood transcended party politics.
“Statehood does not belong to Omar Abdullah or Dr. Farooq Abdullah. It belongs to every citizen of Jammu and Kashmir. That is why we have invited everyone to join this movement,” he said. [KNT]
