National Conference President Farooq Abdullah has called for peace in Jammu and Kashmir without the presence of armed troops on the streets.
The remark comes ahead of the upcoming assembly elections in the union territory.
“Peace should be without these troops around,” said Abdullah, taking aim at the Centre's claims that normalcy had returned to the region. “How many troops have you got here? How many forces? Go and walk on the streets and see how well they are armed. Is that peace?” he questioned.
Abdullah also criticised Jammu and Kashmir’s Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, appointed by the Centre, calling for the immediate restoration of statehood to the region.
“I want full statehood. Immediately. Why should we be under the Viceroy of Delhi? He can order anything. He can change anything," Abdullah said.
The former chief minister was responding to a question about whether an alliance with the Congress could help restore statehood after the assembly elections.
He emphasised that the alliance with Congress was "not a compulsion" but "the need of the hour" for the development of Jammu and Kashmir and to achieve the goal of statehood restoration.
Criticism of the BJP-led government
Abdullah took a swipe at the BJP-led Union government, accusing it of reducing Jammu and Kashmir's status from a state to a Union Territory. "They have downsized us.
Ever since India became independent, I have never known that any state was made into a Union Territory other than Jammu and Kashmir," he said.
He further criticised the Centre's handling of Article 370 and the claim that it would curb terrorism in the region. “I would like to ask them if they were saying that Article 370 was to blame for terrorism in J&K. Have they controlled terrorism? It’s been five years till now that they had total control over the state,” Abdullah stated.
Regarding his son Omar Abdullah's decision to contest from two seats in the upcoming elections, the 88-year-old leader said, "To change the situation, we must actively participate in the elections... Today, we find ourselves in a storm, and we need him to step forward and help us find our way out."
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