Farooq Abdullah Says PM Modi Missed Opportunity to Address J&K Statehood in National Speech
NC Chief Farooq Abdullah emphasizes public hopes for restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood, critiques PSA misuse
SRINAGAR, Sep 22: National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah on Monday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi missed an opportunity to address the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood in his recent national address. The Prime Minister’s speech on Sunday focused primarily on the benefits of the revised GST reforms, which came into effect on Monday.
“You are talking about GST, it would have been better had you talked about our statehood in the speech,” Abdullah told reporters in Srinagar.
On the upcoming Supreme Court hearing regarding J&K’s statehood, slated for the second week of October, Abdullah said that “every citizen of Jammu and Kashmir is hoping that statehood would be restored.” He added, “Not just the National Conference, but everyone has hopes that we will get our statehood back.”
Commenting on JKLF chairman Yasin Malik’s case, Abdullah stated that it is a matter for the courts to decide. Malik, serving a life sentence in a terror funding case, faces multiple charges, including the 1990 Rubaiya Sayeed kidnapping and the Rawalpora IAF attack.
Abdullah described governance in J&K as “walking on a razor’s edge” but stressed the need to continue navigating the challenges.
On the detention of AAP MLA Mehraj Malik under the Public Safety Act (PSA), Abdullah criticized the decision. “The words used by Malik were inappropriate. Such language against an officer was unparliamentary. But the PSA was also wrong. They could have resolved it through talks. But they did not do that,” he said, noting that only the lieutenant governor has authority to revoke a PSA.
