Shawl diplomacy with Delhi wraps CM Omar’s first year, marathons mask slow motion

Srinagar: J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah completed a year in office on Thursday, his tenure defined by “quiet shawl diplomacy” and joining marathons as he appeared to walk in lockstep with the Centre.Omar has kept his National Conference (NC) intact while sidelining Congress and now his father, NC president Farooq Abdullah, keeping him out of Rajya Sabha elections to four seats from J&K slated next week.The CM has directed political heat towards lieutenant-governor (LG) Manoj Sinha and J&K BJP functionaries through deputy CM Surinder Chaudhary, while avoiding confrontation with the Centre.On Thursday, Omar announced the return of the 149-year-old Darbar Move, the biannual shifting of seat of govt between Srinagar (summer) and Jammu (winter).

The system was scrapped after the 2019 abrogation of Article 370 by LG Sinha, who had termed it a wasteful expenditure and a “racket”, and did not reconsider his decision despite protests in Jammu.With Darbar Move’s restoration, thousands of Kashmiris will travel to Jammu in winter, providing a major boost to local trade. Jammu’s business associations have long argued that while the govt saved around Rs 200 crore by halting the practice, it caused losses of more than Rs 10,000 crore in inter-regional trade. The move symbolically bound the two regions of Jammu and Kashmir together. Reviving it, many believe, gives Omar a major political edge.

Omar took oath as the first CM of J&K as a Union Territory last Oct despite earlier having expressed disapproval of such a post in a Centre-controlled region. He flew to New Delhi soon after to meet the Union home and finance ministers, presenting Kashmiri shawls at each meeting.This drew criticism from the People’s Conference and PDP, which argued that Omar should have sought concrete concessions before visiting Delhi.

Months later, with no progress on statehood, Peoples Conference president Sajad Lone quipped that it was “time CM sahib asks for the return of those shawls he so slavishly gifted to top BJP leaders”.Omar however, kept statehood at the center of his political messaging in Kashmir. His first cabinet resolution passed a restoration to this effect. The resolution talked about J&K’s “special position” without directly referring to Article 370, an approach that left the opposition accusing him of soft-pedaling the issue with many sarcastically saying “even UT could be considered special status”.After the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22 this year, Omar convened the assembly to condemn it, avoiding a blame game despite security and law and order being outside his control.“Jammu and Kashmir’s security is currently not the elected govt’s responsibility. But I don't want to use this as an opportunity to demand statehood. How can I use the Pahalgam tragedy to ask the Centre for statehood? Is my politics so cheap? Do I value these 26 lives so little? We have spoken about statehood earlier and will do so in the future.

But shame on me if I go to the Centre and ask for it now. At this point, no politics, no business rules, no statehood.

This time is only for the strong condemnation of this attack and heartfelt support for the victims,” Omar said in the House.In the 90-member Assembly, Omar commands a comfortable majority with 41 NC legislators, six of ally Congress, and the backing of five independents. Of Omar’s five cabinet ministers, three are from Jammu, including deputy CM Chaudhary, giving the region significant representation despite NC’s limited electoral headway there.Last year, Omar turned to his advantage Congress’s refusal to join his govt till statehood was restored. Congress has stayed out of the Cabinet and now it feels sidelined in the Rajya Sabha race too, choosing not to field a candidate in the Oct 24 polls to four seats. Omar quickly stepped in, fielding an NC nominee for the fourth seat and presenting it as a fight against BJP. But Peoples Conference has claimed that keeping Congress out of the contest will help BJP.Omar kept father Farooq out of the Rajya Sabha contest, citing the octogenarian’s health, and replaced him with Shammi Oberai, a low-profile NC loyalist. The elder Abdullah is known for speaking his mind and dominating headlines. By choosing Shammi, a little-known reticent figure, Omar appears to have preferred a quieter presence in Parliament.Through the year, Omar has joined major marathons in Srinagar and Delhi, projecting himself as part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Fit India Movement.”

Politically, however, he has moved very slowly, balancing cooperation with the Centre, carefully advocating restoration of J&K’s statehood while avoiding any mention of Article 370.Omar visited remote areas such as Chosoti in Jammu’s Kishtwar after a cloudburst in recent weeks, showing his intent to reach out despite the limited powers as a Union Territory chief minister. His first year may be remembered less for confrontation and more for calculated restraint, aimed at securing small but significant concessions from the Centre, the revival of the Darbar Move being one of them.