Kashmir Impulse Desk

Jammu, April 24 

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Friday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of effectively admitting that the region’s people were being denied statehood for voting for his National Conference (NC), intensifying a war of words with the opposition.

His remarks came in response to comments by Leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma, who said statehood would be restored “at an appropriate time” and not because Omar Abdullah was chief minister.

“Finally a bit of honesty from the BJP – the people of J&K are to be punished and denied statehood because they voted for the National Conference,” CM Omar said in a post on social media platform X.

The exchange follows a rally by the chief minister in Nowshera earlier this week, where he accused the federal government of backtracking on its promise to restore statehood to the region.

“People voted in large numbers with the expectation of statehood. Delaying it amounts to punishing them,” he said at the rally, urging the government to clarify a timeline for restoration.

Sharma, however, criticised the regional government’s performance, alleging it had failed to deliver on key electoral promises, including free utilities, employment generation and improved public services.

“There is no governance on the ground. People are suffering for basic amenities,” he said, also accusing the administration of rising corruption and lack of oversight across departments.

The BJP has repeatedly said that statehood for Jammu and Kashmir would be restored at an appropriate time, without specifying a timeline.

The region was reorganised into a union territory in 2019, and the restoration of statehood remains a key political issue.