SrinagarSeptember 3, 2025 06:49 AM IST
First published on: Sep 3, 2025 at 04:43 AM IST
PHOTOGRAPHS of Jammu and Kashmir CM Omar Abdullah pushed to the fringes of the frame, even behind the security guards surrounding Union Home Minister Amit Shah as the latter visited the UT to review the flood situation, have given fresh ammunition to detractors of the National Conference government. They said it is another proof of the Abdullah government kowtowing to the Centre, without getting anything in return.
Even as the CM hung at the back in several photos of Shah’s visit, those prominently by the Union minister’s side, besides L-G Manoj Sinha, was Leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma of BJP. Shah was in Jammu on August 31 and September 2, inspecting flood-hit areas in Jammu and chairing several meetings during the visit.
PDP leader Waheed Para told The Indian Express that the way Abdullah had been sidelined was “an insult to the institution, to the mandate and not just one person”. “It is an outcome of the posturing of the CM. He has been submissive from the first day (of his government) and this is the result.”
Iltija Mufti, PDP leader, posted on X: “Deeply unfortunate that the protocol extended to the Chief Minister was conspicuously missing in Jammu yesterday. Politics aside, he’s an elected CM who represents all of us. A little more grace and magnanimity wouldn’t hurt.”
AAP legislator from Doda Mehraj Malik said Abdullah should show some “self respect”, and harked back to AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal’s “advice” to the NC leader to “never trust the BJP”. “At least have self respect and take a stand for your people instead of running behind them (the BJP) like a shadow. J&K needs leaders with courage, not protocol-hungry showpieces,” he said on X.
Former Srinagar mayor Junaid Mattu shared a photo of Shah’s visit, with the comment: “Want to test your eyesight — Can you spot our chief minister in less than 15 seconds.” With others on social media also attacking Abdullah, the NC called the criticism “propaganda” of Opposition parties, particularly PDP, and said people should not buy into it. “The picture captures a particular moment,” an NC leader said. “The CM was in a meeting with the Home Minister and he was accorded proper protocol.”
However, the NC might find it difficult to brush off the controversy given the growing frustration in its ranks over the Centre’s failure to accommodate its government on issues crucial for the UT — from appointment of officials to statehood. This is after the Abdullah government took care to not ruffle the Centre, in the hope of this translating into benefits for J&K — risking the censure of other mainstream parties in J&K.
Abdullah said in his Independence Day speech last month that he was losing hope, given the difficulties he was facing in running the government. The CM said that the dual governance system in place in J&K, with powers resting with the L-G, was structured “not for success” but “for failure” and, for the first time, referred to his government’s decisions that were stuck with the Raj Bhavan. In fact, questions were raised about the presence of L-G at what was essentially a party meet held by Shah with BJP MLAs and MPs from J&K, to take a review of the situation on the ground.
“Everyone knows he (Sinha) is a core BJP guy, but he is holding a constitutional post right now,” said a PDP leader. “He should have stayed away from the meeting for the credibility of the chair…”
NC spokesperson Imran Nabi also questioned the meeting. “Why is the J&K L-G cozying up in a meeting chaired by Shah, surrounded only by BJP MLAs, MPs, and BJP functionaries? If this is not partisanship, then what is? The LG’s office should be neutral, not a BJP extension,” Nabi said.