Srinagar: In a forceful Independence Day address, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Friday denounced the practice of linking Jammu and Kashmir’s political future to acts of terrorism, insisting that Pakistan cannot be allowed to influence decisions on the region’s statehood through violence.
Speaking for the first time on Independence Day since Jammu and Kashmir was downgraded to a Union Territory, Abdullah’s remarks came a day after a Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice of India B. R. Gavai said the “ground situation” must be considered before restoring statehood, noting that “incidents like Pahalgam” could not be ignored.
Calling the reference to Pahalgam “unfortunate,” Abdullah asked, “Will the killers of Pahalgam and their masters in the neighbouring country decide whether we will be a state? Every time we are close to statehood, they sabotage it. Is it fair to punish us for something we had no part in?”
He said the people of Jammu and Kashmir stood united against the April 22 attack in Pahalgam, where Pakistani terrorists killed 26 civilians, mostly tourists, in the Baisaran meadow. Protests, he added, erupted “from Kathua to Kupwara.”
The chief minister announced an eight-week, door-to-door signature campaign across all 90 assembly segments to press for restoration of statehood, aligning it with the timeline given by the Supreme Court for the Centre’s response to a related plea.
“If people refuse to sign, I will accept defeat,” he said, expressing confidence in widespread support. The signatures, he added, will be submitted to the apex court: “We will take these voices from our offices to the doors where decisions are made.”
