Omar Abdullah moves resolution seeking immediate restoration of full statehood to JK

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Friday moved a resolution in the Legislative Assembly seeking the immediate and urgent restoration of full statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, saying the people of the region had been promised a three-step process of delimitation, elections and restoration of statehood.

Abdullah moved the resolution after Question Hour as the Assembly witnessed noisy scenes and protests by BJP members. The resolution calls upon the Government of India to restore full statehood to Jammu and Kashmir and provides that the resolution be forwarded to the Union Government.

Referring to the sequence of developments promised to Jammu and Kashmir, Abdullah said the people had been told that delimitation would be followed by elections and then restoration of statehood. Delimitation and Assembly elections have taken place, he said, while the restoration of statehood remains pending.

The resolution states that, in addition to earlier resolutions passed by the House on June 26, 2000, and November 6, 2024, the Assembly calls upon the Government of India for the immediate and urgent restoration of full statehood to Jammu and Kashmir.

The reference to the November 6, 2024 resolution relates to the resolution passed by the Assembly during its first session after the 2024 elections seeking restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status and constitutional guarantees. The current resolution separately focuses on restoration of full statehood.

Abdullah’s move came amid a disruption in the House, with BJP legislators protesting and copies of the resolution being torn, according to reports from the Assembly. The proceedings were marked by competing slogans and protests as the statehood issue remained at the center of the session.

Restoration of statehood has remained a key demand of the Omar Abdullah-led government since it took office in October 2024. The issue was also taken up by the Cabinet soon after the formation of the elected government, when it adopted a resolution seeking restoration of statehood.

The Chief Minister has repeatedly said that Jammu and Kashmir had received assurances that statehood would be restored after the Assembly elections. On September 17, while speaking in Amritsar, Abdullah reiterated that delimitation and elections had already taken place and that statehood was the remaining step in the sequence communicated to the region.

The present Assembly resolution places the demand formally before the Union Government through the elected legislature. Its wording seeks not a partial restoration but the return of full statehood to Jammu and Kashmir.

The Assembly’s sixth session is scheduled from September 21 to September 30. The September 25 List of Business includes the Chief Minister’s resolution on restoration of statehood along with other legislative and public-interest matters. [KNT]