Omar Abdullah Joins NC Demonstration, Urges Centre to Restore J&K Statehood

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah joined the National Conference's (NC) protest in New Delhi on Monday, intensifying the party's demand for the restoration of statehood to the Union Territory as the Monsoon Session of Parliament commenced.

The demonstration, led by National Conference president Farooq Abdullah, began from 5, Prithviraj Road, where senior party leaders, legislators and workers assembled before marching to press their longstanding demand. The NC has also sought an appointment with President Droupadi Murmu to submit a memorandum urging the Centre to fulfil its commitment to restore statehood.

Omar Abdullah had initially travelled to Delhi on Saturday but returned to Jammu on Sunday after devastating flash floods struck the Poonch-Rajouri region. The chief minister chaired a high-level review meeting to assess rescue and relief operations and monitor the weather situation after the India Meteorological Department forecast moderate to heavy rainfall across Jammu and Kashmir until July 23. After reviewing the flood response, he left for the national capital on Monday morning to participate in the protest.

The National Conference has maintained that the agitation would proceed despite recent challenges, including the flood emergency and the demise of senior party leader Dr. Mustafa Kamal. Party leaders said the restoration of statehood remains a central political commitment and urged the Union government to act on repeated assurances made in Parliament and before the Supreme Court.

The protest, however, exposed differences among Jammu and Kashmir's regional political parties. While the Congress and CPI(M) extended support to the National Conference's campaign, the People's Democratic Party (PDP) and People's Conference stayed away. PDP leader Iltija Mufti criticised the demonstration, describing it as a "lacklustre" exercise and questioning its political effectiveness.

The National Conference's demonstration is expected to keep the issue of Jammu and Kashmir's statehood restoration at the centre of parliamentary and political discussions during the ongoing Monsoon Session, with the party seeking renewed pressure on the Centre to reverse the Union Territory's status nearly seven years after the erstwhile state was reorganised in August 2019.