Omar Abdullah Criticizes Terror Links to J&K Statehood Restoration

In a firm address, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah criticized the correlation of Jammu and Kashmir's political future with acts of terror. He pledged to start a signature campaign urging the restoration of statehood, condemning external influences from Pakistan and detailing his plan for garnering local support.

In a decisive Independence Day speech, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah took a firm stance against associating Jammu and Kashmir's political status with acts of terror. He asserted that Pakistan must not have the influence to affect the region's statehood through terrorism.

Abdullah's comments, delivered during his first speech after assuming office as Chief Minister post-relegation of Jammu and Kashmir to a union territory, followed recent remarks from a Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice B R Gavai. The court emphasized that regional 'ground situations' should be considered before restoring J&K's statehood, with a nod to 'incidents like Pahalgam.'

Omar Abdullah condemned the use of such events in decision-making, questioning the fairness of allowing external actors to dictate J&K's political fate. He announced a significant signature campaign aimed at reinstating statehood, planning to gather support across all 90 assembly segments in the coming weeks.

(With inputs from agencies.)