Anantnag, Sept 30 : Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Tuesday said there would be no compromise on the demand for the restoration of statehood and asserted that the political approach to achieve it would remain democratic and peaceful.
Speaking at a public meeting in Anantnag, Abdullah said he was ready to protest if needed, but would not support actions that lead to violence or unrest in the Valley. He said Kashmir had already experienced enough pain and that repeating such a cycle was not acceptable.
“We will continue our efforts for statehood, but through democratic and peaceful means,” he said. “I cannot allow the region to return to a situation where people suffer again.”
Abdullah also rejected the idea of forming any political arrangement with the BJP to regain statehood. He said that if BJP’s inclusion in the government was seen as a step toward restoring statehood, he would rather step down.
“Let someone else take charge if that’s the case. I will not be part of any such compromise,” he said.
He recalled that after the last assembly elections, he had the option to align with the BJP but chose not to. Referring to the alliance formed by PDP in 2015 and 2016, he said that even if statehood could have been achieved faster through such a path, he preferred to keep BJP out of power in the region.
Commenting on the situation in Ladakh, he noted that those who initially supported the removal of Article 370 are now raising concerns. “We had said from day one that what happened on August 5, 2019, was not right,” he added.
Abdullah concluded by stating that while governance and development matter, the demand for statehood is about identity and will not be abandoned.(KNS).
