Srinagar, Sep 30 (KDC): Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Tuesday reiterated that he would not compromise on the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, stressing that the struggle would remain firmly rooted in democratic values and non-violence.
Addressing a public gathering in Anantnag, Omar asserted that while he was prepared to lead protests, he would never allow the Valley to descend into another cycle of “destruction, devastation and bloodshed.”
“I will fight democratically and peacefully for the restoration of statehood. But I will not allow Kashmir to once again plunge into fire. Families here have already suffered enough grief, and I do not want that cycle to return,” he said.
The Chief Minister categorically ruled out any political accommodation with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to achieve the objective. “If inclusion of BJP in the government will help restore statehood, then take my resignation and make any other MLA the Chief Minister. But I will not compromise,” he declared.
Omar recalled that after the last assembly elections, he too had the option of aligning with the BJP. “Like Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and Mehbooba Mufti did in 2015 and 2016, I could have chosen to form government with the BJP. Perhaps statehood would have come sooner. But I chose the other path, to keep BJP away from power in J&K. We may have to wait longer, but I will never allow them to enter government through us,” he said.
Drawing a comparison with Ladakh, where protests have been met with force, Omar said Kashmir cannot risk a similar tragedy. “In Ladakh, when people came out, firing started within an hour. Here in Kashmir, they won’t even wait that long – bullets will rain within ten minutes. I don’t want Kashmiri families to collapse under grief again. We will continue our fight, but democratically and peacefully,” he maintained.
He also reminded people that Ladakh, which initially welcomed the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019, has now admitted that it was the constitutional protection which safeguarded their interests. “We had said it then, and we say it now – whatever happened on August 5, 2019, was wrong,” he said.
Concluding his address, Omar underlined that the demand for statehood is not in opposition to development. “We are not against governance or progress, but statehood is our identity. We will not rest until it is restored – and that too without surrendering our principles,” he said. (KDC)
