Omar Abdullah To Launch Door-To-Door Signature Campaign For Statehood

Speaking at the Independence Day event at Bakshi Stadium here, while referring to the Supreme Court’s observation that the “ground situation,” including the Pahalgam attack, should be considered before restoring statehood, he asked why the actions of terrorists and their supporters across the border should dictate J&K’s status. He said it was unfair to punish the people of J&K for a crime they did not commit.

The Apex Court had on Thursday sought a response from the Centre within eight weeks on a plea seeking the restoration of statehood to J&K, saying ground realities, including the recent Pahalgam incident, cannot be ignored.

The Chief Minister highlighted widespread public protests against the attack, from Kathua to Kupwara, and lamented that the region was being penalized for it.

The Chief Minister said that his signature campaign would gauge public support. He said, “From today, we will use these eight weeks to go door to door in all 90 assembly segments for a signature campaign on the restoration of statehood. If people are not ready to sign the document, I will accept defeat.” He added, “We will have to take these voices from our offices to the doors where these decisions are taken. The signature campaign documents will be submitted to the apex court.”

Reflecting on J&K’s transition from a state to a Union Territory, the Chief Minister called the current governance structure “designed for failure,” citing stalled Cabinet decisions and bureaucratic unaccountability. He questioned whether J&K had achieved equality with the rest of India, asserting that the prolonged wait for statehood and unfulfilled promises from Delhi had dimmed hopes, though he remained determined to fight for change.

Ruling National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah endorsed the signature campaign announcement, describing it as a vigorous and essential effort to demand the restoration of J&K’s statehood. Speaking to reporters, he expressed mixed emotions over the loss of the erstwhile state’s special status under Article 370 and 35A. SeniorAbdullah emphasized that the Chief Minister’s announcement sends a clear and powerful message to the relevant authorities.

However, the Opposition parties ridiculed the Chief Minister’s signature campaign announcement. J&K People’s Conference chairman and former minister Sajad Gani Lone dismissed it as “theatrics,” asserting that a resolution passed by the Legislative Assembly, a constitutional body, would hold greater authority than a signature campaign, which he argued has no legal or constitutional validity. He accused Abdullah of bypassing the Assembly to shield the BJP from taking a stance on statehood and urged a more dignified approach to the SC.

Similarly, People’s Democratic Party (PDP) leader and MLA Waheed Para called the campaign a “betrayal,” accusing Abdullah of failing to honour election promises to restore J&K’s pre-August 5, 2019 status, including Article 370, and reducing the fight to “token gestures.”

“Omar Abdullah owes an apology, not a signature campaign, for normalising 5th August. With 50 MLAs behind him, he has reduced the fight for J-K’s statehood to token gestures, after seeking votes door-to-door on the promise of restoring pre-“5th August status,” Para said in an X post.

In his Independence Day address, the Chief Minister mourned the Kishtwar cloudburst victims, assuring government support and promising to investigate administrative lapses despite prior weather warnings.