Omar Abdullah Criticizes Central Government for Breaking Statehood Promises to J&K and Ladakh

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Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has criticized the central government for failing to honor commitments made to both Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir, claiming this has intensified mistrust through continued delays in restoring statehood.

During the launch event of senior journalist Harinder Baweja's new book "They Will Shoot You, Madam: My life through conflict" on Sunday, Abdullah stated that the government had not followed through on its own established roadmap, initially for Jammu and Kashmir and subsequently for Ladakh, suggesting the latter was deceived with promises that were fundamentally "impossible" to fulfill.

"When seeking Ladakh's participation in Hill Council elections, you promised them the Sixth Schedule. It was widely recognized that implementing the Sixth Schedule in Ladakh was virtually impossible. A territory bordering China on one side and Pakistan on the other necessitates substantial defense presence, which the Sixth Schedule cannot accommodate. Yet, these promises were made to secure electoral participation," he explained.

The 55-year-old leader also expressed concern about the abrupt change in attitude toward Ladakhi leaders, particularly climate activist Sonam Wangchuk.

"A person who was previously praising the prime minister as an environmental champion and expressing gratitude for fulfilling Ladakhi aspirations by granting UT status in 2019... nobody questioned him then. Now suddenly, a Pakistani connection has emerged. Just two days ago, no such connection existed. Where did this come from?" Abdullah questioned.

Protests demanding statehood and Ladakh's inclusion in the Constitution's Sixth Schedule escalated into violence on September 24, resulting in four fatalities and numerous injuries.

Subsequently, Wangchuk, one of the protest leaders, was detained under the National Security Act (NSA).

Regarding Jammu and Kashmir's statehood restoration demand, Abdullah accused the central government of breaking its promises.

"We were told of a three-phase process — delimitation first, followed by elections, and finally statehood restoration. The initial two phases have been completed, but the third has seen no progress. And then there's confusion about why trust is lacking," he remarked.

Abdullah warned that this erosion of trust was undermining public confidence, despite unprecedented participation by Jammu and Kashmir residents in recent parliamentary and assembly elections.

He referenced recent Supreme Court observations on statehood, where petitioners urging the government to restore Jammu and Kashmir's status were advised to consider "ground realities" such as the Pahalgam terror attack.

Abdullah described it as "deeply troubling" that the matter appeared contingent on cross-border events, questioning, "Is Pakistan now determining whether J-K should regain statehood?" "Because whenever statehood seems imminent, incidents like Pahalgam occur, setting us back again," he added, insisting that statehood cannot be used as a reward for good behavior.

Emphasizing that the issue concerns the people rather than the territory, Abdullah stated that Kashmiris desire a genuine sense of belonging again.

"We make that small distinction in terminology, but it creates an enormous impact on the ground... The people have demonstrated repeatedly over the past few years that they want recognition, they want their voices heard, they want respect," he asserted.

Former Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh also participated in the panel discussion.

"They Will Shoot You, Madam", published by Roli Books, documents Baweja's experiences investigating conflict zones, revealing stories from challenging environments—from Punjab's violence-stricken streets to Kashmir's volatile regions, and extending to Pakistan and war-torn Afghanistan.