Omar Abdullah Reaffirms Commitment to Restoring J&K’s Special Status

Jammu: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday firmly reiterated that his government remains committed to restoring Jammu and Kashmir’s special constitutional status, asserting that Article 370 continues to exist within the Indian Constitution despite being “hollowed out” of its substantive provisions.

Winding up the discussion on the Motion of Thanks to the Lieutenant Governor’s Address in the Union Territory Assembly, Abdullah said the omission of Article 370 from the address should not be misconstrued as a shift in policy. The provision, he argued, was never formally removed from the Constitution, and therefore did not require explicit mention. “We do not consider it necessary to explicitly mention Article 370 because it has not been removed from the basic statute of the nation. Had it been removed, I would have said it must be reinserted. It still exists. You hollowed it out and snatched away our constitutional status,” he said.

Reaffirming the National Conference’s electoral commitments, Abdullah stressed that both his party and the government stand by their promise to seek the restoration of J&K’s pre‑2019 constitutional safeguards. He added that if Article 370 were ever fully deleted from the Constitution, his government would move a resolution in the Assembly for its reinstatement the very next day.

Referring to a resolution passed by the Assembly in an earlier session, he noted that the House had already expressed its clear view that the special status must be restored. “There is nothing more that needs to be said. Most of its substance was removed, but that part embedded in law still remains,” he remarked.

Abdullah’s comments came in response to criticism from opposition members who questioned why the Lt. Governor’s Address did not explicitly reference the restoration of Articles 370 and 35A or the return of full statehood—issues that formed a central plank of the NC’s election campaign.

Turning the argument back on the Centre, the Chief Minister asked why the people of J&K should be blamed for the continued delay in restoring statehood when law and order remains a subject directly controlled by the Union government through the Lt. Governor. Responding to Leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma’s claim that statehood would be restored only when the last militant gun falls silent, Abdullah pointed out that the people of Kashmir had strongly and openly condemned the Pahalgam terror attack and had consistently stood for peace, barring a small section of disgruntled youth.

Challenging the Centre’s narrative that the abrogation of Article 370 would end terrorism, Abdullah cited recent encounters in Kishtwar and Udhampur as evidence that militancy-related incidents continue despite the 2019 changes. “Where do these people come from? Why are they not stopped before they reach places like Kishtwar and Udhampur? What is the fault of the Kashmiris if Pahalgam happens? No such incidents happened when we were in government,” he said, questioning the logic of attributing violence to the erstwhile constitutional arrangement.

Abdullah expressed optimism that longstanding anomalies in the Transaction of Business Rules—which govern the distribution of powers between the elected government and the Lt. Governor—would soon be rectified.

The Chief Minister also addressed the broader debate on J&K’s integration with the rest of India. Responding to a BJP MLA’s assertion that the August 5, 2019 decisions had completed the process of integration, Abdullah argued that genuine integration cannot be achieved through coercive measures such as the Public Safety Act (PSA), arrests, or force. “Integration does not happen through PSA, arrests or force. Integration happens through hearts. Accept us from your heart, believe from your heart that you are ours and we are yours—only then will real integration take place,” he said. The PSA was originally enacted in 1978 to curb timber smuggling but frequently been used by successive governments to suppress dissent, with hundreds detained under it, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, and other stringent laws since 2019.

On the contentious reservation issue, Abdullah informed the House that the Cabinet-approved proposal had already been forwarded to the Union Home Ministry through the Lieutenant Governor for further consideration. Referring to ongoing protests, he urged demonstrators to direct their grievances to the appropriate authority. “Those who felt proud protesting outside my residence should now protest outside the Home Minister’s residence. Let them meet the Union Home Minister, who is visiting Jammu and Kashmir, and submit a memorandum to him,” he said.