‘Stopped from protesting peacefully, but not silenced’:Omar Abdullah says struggle for restoring JK’s statehood has just begun

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday alleged that the Centre suppressed the National Conference’s protest at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar over the restoration of statehood. He said the party was prevented from reaching the protest site and holding a peaceful demonstration but vowed to continue the campaign. In a post on X, Omar said, “We were stopped from getting to Jantar Mantar and stopped from protesting peacefully for what is rightfully ours, but we were not silenced. This is only the beginning of our struggle for statehood, our rights, our dignity and everything that was taken away from us.” Omar Abdullah takes auto-rickshaw after Jantar Mantar protest Omar Abdullah said he took an auto-rickshaw after the National Conference’s protest at Jantar Mantar, as his walk back was turning into another procession. Sharing the update on X, Omar wrote, “My walk from Jantar Mantar was about to turn into another procession, so we grabbed the first available means of transport.” NC says delay in restoring statehood hurting national interest National Conference leaders maintained that the protest was aimed at reminding the Centre of its commitment to restore Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood. NC MLA Hasnain Masoodi said the promise was made both in Parliament and before the Supreme Court, but no action has been taken even after one-and-a-half years. “We exercised patience for a year. The prevailing uncertainty is not in the interest of the nation or its people. That is why we have come here to protest,” he said. Deputy CM: Centre must honour its promise Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Kumar Choudhary had earlier said the July 20 protest was intended to remind the Prime Minister and the Home Minister of their assurance to restore statehood after the 2024 Assembly elections. He said the National Conference had waited for 21 months and decided during a meeting of party legislators to hold a protest at Jantar Mantar to press for the fulfilment of that promise. NC alleges protest was blocked The National Conference had announced the Jantar Mantar protest on July 20 and invited leaders from 52 political parties to participate. Party president Farooq Abdullah had appealed for support across party lines. Earlier this month, Omar Abdullah claimed the party had not been granted permission for the protest and alleged there was an attempt to “sabotage” the demonstration. Background The restoration of full statehood has remained one of the National Conference’s key demands since the Centre abrogated Article 370 in August 2019 and bifurcated the erstwhile state into the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. In December 2023, the Supreme Court upheld the abrogation of Article 370. While the court did not rule on restoring statehood, the Centre had informed it that Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood would be restored at an appropriate time.