Omar Abdullah Says Normalcy in J&K Post Article 370 Abrogation is ‘Forced’
New Delhi: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has claimed that the normalcy in the region after the abrogation of Article 370 is “forced” rather than organic, countering the central government’s narrative of peace and stability in the Union Territory.
Speaking at a media event in Delhi, Abdullah pointed to recent security measures, including the closure of Srinagar’s Jama Masjid on Shab-e-Baraat, as evidence that true normalcy has not yet returned to Kashmir.
Concerns Over Security and Freedom
“If what is happening today in J&K is organic, then nothing like it. If it is driven out of fear, then there is a problem. Because you can only control a situation through fear for a limited time. If it’s organic, it will remain forever,” Abdullah stated. He further suggested that both security forces and the local population do not perceive the situation as naturally stable.
He made these remarks in response to a question comparing the current security environment to that of 2010, when over 200 youths were killed during protests in Kashmir. The NDA-led central government has frequently cited a reduction in shutdowns, separatist activities, and militant violence as proof of improved conditions since the revocation of Article 370 in August 2019.
Reference to Jama Masjid Closure and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq
To support his argument, Abdullah highlighted the authorities’ refusal to allow Hurriyat chairperson Mirwaiz Umar Farooq to lead the funeral prayers of his father-in-law at the Jama Masjid in Srinagar.
“If they believed it was organic, they wouldn’t have closed Jama Masjid to prevent Mirwaiz Farooq from having his father-in-law’s namaz-e-janaza,” he remarked.
He further argued that genuine normalcy does not require stringent restrictions: “The reason they cited was that they feared a law and order situation breaking out. A law and order situation doesn’t break out when normalcy is organic; it breaks out when normalcy is forced. What we have in parts of J&K today is not organic normalcy, it is forced normalcy.”
The remarks come amid ongoing debates over the political and security situation in Jammu and Kashmir, with the central government maintaining that the revocation of Article 370 has ushered in a new era of peace and development, while opposition leaders and local stakeholders continue to raise concerns over civil liberties and political rights in the region.
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