Centre must be given first opportunity to restore statehood of J&K, says CM Omar Abdullah

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday said that he wanted to give the Centre the “first opportunity” to restore the Union Territory’s statehood before seeking legal recourse, The Indian Express reported.

The National Conference leader told reporters that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had himself committed to restorating the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir. “Every government or every individual has recourse to courts,” Abdullah said. “But that was never going to be our first option.”

The Bharatiya Janata Party-led Centre had abrogated Article 370, which gave special status to the erstwhile state, in August 2019. It also bifurcated the state into two Union Territories: Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.

In December 2023, the Supreme Court upheld the validity of the 2019 order abrogating Article 370 and ordered the Centre to restore statehood to Jammu and Kashmir.

On Thursday, the chief minister noted that the Centre was not blind to the “benefits” of the recent Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir.

The National Conference-Congress alliance won the recent Assembly polls in the Union Territory and Abdullah became the chief minister. The elections were the first in Jammu and Kashmir in 10 years, and the first since the abrogation of Article 370.

“The biggest promise the Central government made to J&K [ahead of the elections] is restoration of statehood,”...

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