Srinagar, Aug 28 (KNS) National Conference Lok Sabha member Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi has questioned party president Farooq Abdullah over what he described as a shift in the party’s position on the restoration of Article 370, saying political aspirations of the people of Jammu and Kashmir should not be restricted to what the BJP is prepared to offer.
In a letter addressed to Abdullah on Friday, Ruhullah sought an explanation for the National Conference’s 2024 Assembly election manifesto promising restoration of Article 370 despite the BJP being in power at the Centre.
“Were we making promises we knew we could not keep or perhaps never truly intended to keep?” Ruhullah asked, according to the letter.
His remarks came days after Abdullah said, “How long will you be a slave? You have to stand on your feet sometimes. When will you stand?”
Ruhullah said Abdullah’s statement raised questions about the party’s own approach to issues concerning Jammu and Kashmir.
He questioned why his demand for constitutional guarantees for the region had drawn criticism if the NC president genuinely wanted the people to “stand on their feet”.
Ruhullah also referred to Abdullah’s reported remark that those seeking Article 370 were “begging from Delhi”, saying that demands for both restoration of Article 370 and statehood were currently being raised before the Centre.
“If statehood is treated as the final limit of our political aspirations, then how is our position different from that of the BJP?” he asked.
The Srinagar MP argued that limiting the political agenda to restoration of statehood could amount to accepting the constitutional changes made in August 2019.
He said constitutional safeguards remained important for protecting Jammu and Kashmir’s land, resources, culture, traditions, language and environment, besides addressing concerns related to employment and religious rights.
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Ruhullah said Article 370, in his understanding, represented a larger question concerning the dignity, political rights and constitutional protections of the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
He also questioned Abdullah’s decision to publicly seek his resignation, recalling that the NC president had been chief minister when the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir Assembly passed the Autonomy Resolution.
“What has changed—the aspirations of our people, or the JKNC’s willingness to stand up for them?” Ruhullah asked.
The MP said he had faced criticism within the party for raising these issues but maintained that he did not want to be part of what he described as a political “lie”.
He said he had several other questions for the party president but would wait for Abdullah’s response, adding that the people of Jammu and Kashmir also deserved clarity on what the National Conference stood for.
On his resignation, Ruhullah said it would be submitted but insisted that accountability should precede it.
“Rest assured, the resignation will come. It would have come even without you asking, but before that must come accountability,” he said.
Ruhullah also responded to Abdullah’s reported question about his identity before joining the National Conference, saying he came from a family associated with a “long tradition of martyrdom”.
He said Abdullah himself had invited him to join the NC and was aware of his background.
“I hope that, before launching another public attack on my background, you will remember this,” Ruhullah said.
The exchange comes amid growing differences between Ruhullah and the NC leadership over the party’s approach to the restoration of Article 370 and other political issues concerning Jammu and Kashmir.(KNS).