Srinagar | September 24, 2025 : Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday strongly criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over the continued delay in restoring statehood to the Union Territory, calling it an “unfair punishment” for the people of J&K.
Speaking to reporters in Srinagar, Abdullah alleged that the Centre’s reluctance stems from the BJP’s electoral defeat in the region.
“People participated in the election process. It is the BJP’s bad luck that they couldn’t win. However, the people here cannot be punished for that. It seems like statehood is not being restored since the BJP didn’t form the government. That is unfair,” he said.
Statehood: The ‘Biggest Challenge’
Abdullah flagged the delay as the “biggest challenge”, reminding that the Centre itself had assured the Supreme Court of a three-step process—delimitation, elections, and then statehood.
“Delimitation has been done, elections have been held, yet statehood has not been restored. The BJP’s opposition to it is evident,” the CM said.
He also linked the delay to missed opportunities in tourism:
“We were hoping for a revival of tourism, especially an influx of visitors during and after the Pooja season from West Bengal and other states. But that is not happening.”
Row Over ‘I Love Muhammad’ Arrests
On being asked about arrests made in connection with the ‘I Love Muhammad’ slogan row, Abdullah called the move absurd:
“Why would anyone object to it? Don’t people from other religions write about their gods? If that is not illegal, how is writing ‘I Love Muhammad’ a crime? Someone must be genuinely mentally ill to register a case on this. I hope the courts fix it.”
Background
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On August 5, 2019, the Centre abrogated Article 370 and bifurcated the erstwhile state into two Union Territories — J&K (with legislature) and Ladakh (without legislature).
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Since then, regional parties and civil society groups have been demanding restoration of full statehood.
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On August 14, 2025, the Supreme Court heard a plea on the matter, observing that the ground realities in J&K, including the recent Pahalgam terror attack, must be taken into account while considering statehood restoration.
Abdullah concluded that justice and fairness demand immediate restoration of statehood, irrespective of electoral outcomes.
