Examiner Bureau | Anantnag:
National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah on Sunday questioned the Centre’s repeated assertion that terrorism had ended in Jammu and Kashmir, asking who was responsible for the recent killings of civilians and security personnel if militancy had indeed been eliminated.
Referring to the recent killings of civilians, labourers and a police officer, Abdullah said those responsible should be identified publicly instead of every attack being attributed to terrorists without further explanation.
“You keep saying that terrorism has ended. If terrorism has ended, then who is carrying out these killings? Bring them before the public. Let us see them,” he said.
Questioning the official narrative on border security, Abdullah added, “People are being killed here, and all we are told is that terrorists killed them. But where did they come from? The border is said to be completely under control. Who is doing these killings?”
The former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister also rejected claims that the security situation had fundamentally improved following the constitutional changes of August 2019.
“You can see for yourself how much they have changed. Has terrorism ended? They keep proclaiming before the whole world that it has. We are only saying: restore our statehood. Give us back our statehood. Why are you not doing it?” he said.
Reiterating the National Conference’s demand for the restoration of statehood, Abdullah said the party was doing everything within its limited powers to address public grievances despite Jammu and Kashmir functioning as a Union Territory.
“The National Conference is facing many challenges. We are trying from every possible direction despite the difficulties, especially when this is a Union Territory and almost everything is in the hands of the Lieutenant Governor. Whatever we can do, we are doing, and we are trying to reduce the hardships faced by the people,” he said.
Commenting on the situation in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), Abdullah described its residents as “our brothers” and urged the international community to take note of their plight.
“They are our brothers too. They are going through immense suffering,” he said, adding that the United Nations and its human rights mechanisms should assess the situation on the ground.
“The United Nations is such a big organisation. It has a human rights body. They should go there and see what their condition is. But everyone is silent. No country is doing anything,” Abdullah said.
He also remarked that while India considers the people of PoK its own, “even it is not talking about them.”
Responding to BJP criticism over his remarks linking the recent Kulgam attack to the demand for restoration of statehood, Abdullah dismissed the allegations, saying, “They have their own politics to pursue. They are the ones ruining everything through this politics.”
Asked about PDP president Mehbooba Mufti’s recent allegation that the National Conference had endorsed the executions of Afzal Guru and Maqbool Bhat, Abdullah declined to comment.
“I will not respond to Mehbooba Ji. Whatever she says, she says,” he said.
On the prolonged disruption to truck movement on the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway, Abdullah appealed for patience, saying the situation would improve.
“They too will move. Why are you worried? We need patience. We have neither patience nor tolerance. The day we learn patience and tolerance, everything will be fine,” he said.
