SRINAGAR: In a fiery address to party workers in Sopore, the Vice President of Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (NC), Omar Abdullah, lashed out at Home Minister Amit Shah’s recent remarks on the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) in JK, labeling them as mere “election rhetoric.”
Addressing a gathering organised by Irshad Rasool Kar, the in-charge constituency of Sopore, Abdullah criticised the timing of Shah’s statement, suggesting it was aimed at misleading the public. “If New Delhi thinks everything is normal in JK, even militancy and separatism are over, then it’s high time to remove AFSPA and withdraw troops,” Abdullah asserted, challenging the government’s sincerity.
He further questioned the sudden interest in AFSPA revocation, highlighting the National Conference’s longstanding advocacy for its repeal. “NC has been a strong votary of Revocation of AFSPA,” Abdullah emphasized, recounting his own efforts dating back to 2011.
Abdullah also criticised the government’s handling of civilian movement on highways, demanding immediate action to ease restrictions. “Let them first start with this measure and give people traveling on the highway a sigh of relief,” he urged, highlighting the plight of Kashmiri youth imprisoned outside the region.
In a scathing attack, Abdullah accused the government of perpetrating new injustices, alleging coercion against separatist leaders’ families and criticizing the handling of the fruit industry in the region. “The rulers have left the people of this historic area at the mercy of the situation,” he lamented, pointing to economic hardships exacerbated by government policies.
Warning against attempts to weaken the National Conference, Abdullah invoked historical parallels, likening current political maneuvers to past electoral defeats. “The aim is to weaken the National Conference, but the same fate awaits the present-day conspirators,” he declared defiantly.
Abdullah’s impassioned address underscored the simmering discontent in Kashmir, highlighting the complex web of political, economic, and social challenges facing the region. As election season approaches, his words resonate not just with party loyalists but with a populace grappling with uncertainty and disillusionment.
Abdullah, addressing another gathering of party workers in North Kashmir’s Baramulla district, alleged that BJP leader Gen (retd) V K Singh actively obstructed the revocation of AFSPA during the UPA-2 government while serving as Army chief.
He asserted his ongoing advocacy for AFSPA’s revocation since 2011, during his tenure as chief minister, questioning the origins of opposition to the move. “The home minister remembers AFSPA now. I fought for it (revocation of AFSPA) since 2011 when I was the chief minister. It was Gen V K Singh, who was his ministerial colleague, and who was the chief of armed staff who opposed the revocation of AFSPA.”
