Omar Abdullah warns Centre not to test patience on J&K statehood

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Saturday asked the Centre not to mistake his patience for weakness on the restoration of statehood, and demanded clarity on what it meant by the "appropriate time" for taking that step. He said patience did not mean silence, and warned against taking undue advantage of it.

Abdullah also questioned why the Centre was ready to talk to representatives of Ladakh but not to the people of Jammu and Kashmir. He appealed to political parties to support the National Conference's proposed protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi on July 20 over the demand for statehood.

Addressing a workers' convention at the mausoleum of his grandparents in Hazratbal on the 26th death anniversary of his grandmother Akbar Jehan, Abdullah said the biggest lesson he had learnt from her was patience.

"We have to keep patience – as was shown by her. But patience is not the path of weakness. Patience is not the path of silence," he said.

"It doesn't mean that we don't have to raise our voice for our rights. It doesn't mean that you will take undue advantage of our patience. It doesn't mean that you will think us weak. This patience is our strength, it is our voice, and God willing, this patience will be our success."

He said the central government should ask itself why, after more than one-and-a-half years in office, the ruling side in Jammu and Kashmir was preparing to protest at Jantar Mantar.

"There must be some compulsion; something must have changed. I kept my political future and reputation at stake and told the Centre that we want to secure our rights through dialogue and not violence, knowing that this decision can be very risky for me politically," he said.

Abdullah said that after forming the government, he wanted to give the Centre some time to fulfil its promises, but added, "The reality is that they want to keep the situation like this."

He said his party's success in the Assembly elections had become a "punishment" for the people of Jammu and Kashmir. "Why did you (let us) form the government if you will not allow it to function? What is the benefit? Then you should not have conducted the elections," he said.

Accusing the BJP-led Centre of controlling the governance of Jammu and Kashmir through the Lieutenant Governor, he said, "If you had to harass people through the Raj Bhavan, dismiss employees and run bulldozers, then why did you bring us forward?"

He added, "They should have told us at that time that you come forward, but we will tie your hands behind your back. That we will give you those officers who will not implement (your) decisions. It is our patience that we are still working like donkeys to achieve something for the people of Jammu and Kashmir."

Abdullah also pressed the Centre to explain the meaning of "appropriate time". "I ask them, for God's sake, how will we know that the appropriate time has come. What do my colleagues and I have to do to reach that appropriate time?" he said.

He asked whether it meant that the BJP first had to come to power in the erstwhile state. "Have the courage to say it publicly. At least, we will not remain in this deception that you will fulfil the promise," he added.

Referring to voter participation in the parliamentary and Assembly elections, Abdullah asked how many more elections would have to be fought on the hope that statehood would eventually be restored.

He said his party also wanted local bodies and panchayat polls, but added that the Jammu and Kashmir government would decide what the appropriate time for holding those elections would be. "Both sides can use this 'appropriate time'. You have made a joke of our patience, decency and silence. Do you want to light a fire here?" he asked.

On the Centre's talks with Ladakh representatives, Abdullah said a message was being sent that nothing could be achieved without protest.

"Today, knowingly or unknowingly, or in a well-thought-out way, we are sent a message that nothing can be achieved without protests. We compare our situation with Ladakh, and are forced to raise the question of what you (the Centre) are ready to talk with Ladakh, why not us?" he asked.

He said Article 370 had been revoked on the argument that there should be the same Constitution across the country, but the government was now ready to give special concessions to Ladakh.

"You tell us that there should be only one way in the country, everyone should be equal, and that is why we revoked Article 370. But, if you tell Ladakh that you talk to us, we will give you 371. We seek statehood, but the same BJP people who are ready to give 371 to Ladakh, tell us we will not get the statehood," he said.

He said Ladakh was being offered every concession while the Jammu and Kashmir government could not even choose its officers.

"We ask them to at least let us choose officers to work with, but they do not allow us. You tell Ladakh they can decide upon the chief secretary, write his ACR, and make budgetary decisions as well, and say we do not have any objections. Why is this? It is because the people of Ladakh started an agitation," he added.

Abdullah appealed to political parties to support the July 20 protest in Delhi and dismissed criticism that the issue had not been discussed with others. He said the question of statehood did not belong only to his family, but to all the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

"Do only me and Farooq (Abdullah) sahib have to live in the state, and the rest will remain in the UT? We made the programme to go to Jantar Mantar. The issue of statehood is not only ours but also of the whole J-K. We invited all parties that have MLAs in the current assembly, or have had in the past. Tell me what was needed to invite Ghulam Nabi Azad, Altaf Bukhari, Hakeem Yaseen or the Panthers party? Statehood belongs to all, not just us," he said.

He urged parties to put electoral rivalry aside for the moment, saying, "Kargil, Ladakh, Buddhists, Muslims, Congress, NC, BJP, all came together to achieve something," and added that it would be a huge injustice to the people of Jammu and Kashmir if some leaders stayed away from the protest out of fear or pressure.

He also asked party workers to hold protest programmes at district headquarters on July 20, but said they should raise slogans only on the restoration of statehood.

Calling it the beginning of a larger effort, Abdullah said the next course and shape of the agitation would depend on whether the Centre was ready to talk, as he sharpened his demand for statehood while questioning the delay and contrasting Jammu and Kashmir's position with Ladakh's.

- Ends