Two years after the special status of Jammu And Kashmir was abrogated and he was detained for 234 days, National Conference leader Omar Abdullah said on Wednesday that after initially being 'deeply jaded' he had realised that as a politician he didn't have the right to 'mourn' for long and could not let down the people struggling for their basic constitutional rights.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday charged Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah with "provoking" the situation in KashmirValley and condemned his interview for having a "sympathetic chord" for Afzal Guru who was hanged last week for his role in the Parliament attack case.
Authorities in Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday asked border villages residents, who were evacuated to safer places in view of cross border shelling by Pakistan, not to rush back to homes as they are yet to sanitise and clear these areas of any unexplored shells.
In the backdrop of the recent ceasefire violations by Pakistan, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said India had the right to respond to them.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah called on Union Home Minister P Chidambaram on Wednesday morning and discussed with him the current situation in the state.
"The rotation issue did come up during the discussion but Congress President Sonia Gandhi was kind enough to understand the point of view that rotation was damaging to the state and created uncertainty and confusion," Omar told reporters in New Delhi when asked if there would be a set-up similar to the one in the previous Congress-Peoples Democratic Party government in J&K
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has ridiculed the resolution of Pakistan's National Assembly on ceasefire violations along the Line of Control, saying conflicting signals emanating from the neighbouring country were helping the hawks on both sides.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday spoke to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh over phone and briefed him on the law and order situation in the Valley.
A delegation of the Kashmir Administrative Service Officers Association called on Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Saturday and conveyed its anguish over reports about Minister of State for Home Sajad Ahmad Kitchloo slapping an officer of their fraternity in the mountainous Kishtwar district earlier this week.
Mehbooba Mufti said she will not contest the assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir, pointing out that she would not be able to fulfil her party's agenda in the union territory set up even if she were to become the chief minister.
Heavy rains across India have led to widespread flooding, causing damage to infrastructure, displacement of residents, and disruption of normal life. Rescue efforts are underway in affected areas.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has complained to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh against the army's public criticism of him and his government, following which Northern Army Commander Lieutenant General B S Jaswal has tendered an apology. The controversy arose after the army's Northern Command based in Udhampur issued a press release on the encounter that took place on November 29 on the outskirts of Srinagar.
The attack, which took place near a heavily guarded complex housing All India Radio and Doordarshan Kendra near the Tourist Reception Centre, comes a day after security forces eliminated a top Pakistani commander of Lashkar-e-Tayiba in the Khanyar locality of downtown Srinagar.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has convened an all-party meeting in Srinagar on Monday to discuss ways to contain the violence that has engulfed the valley, according to an official spokesman. The chief minister will hold a meeting of legislators of the coalition partners on Sunday. The ruling coalition comprises Abdullah's National Conference and the Congress. The decision to hold an all-party meeting is part of the chief minister's initiative to reach out.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah had a miraculous escape on Tuesday night when the engine of his official vehicle caught fire filling the entire jeep with smoke.
'Anybody who says one critical word can be branded as somebody who's glorifying terrorism.'
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah refused to term the latest militancy incident at Lal Chowk as a suicide attack saying it was just a confrontation between the security forces and militants on the run.
'Pakistan will also have to play its role in this so that the relations between the two countries improve.'
Expressing concern on the shocking revelations made by David Headley implicating the Inter Services Intelligence with 26/11 Mumbai attacks, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has urged the Central government not to suspend the composite dialogue with Pakistan.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday said he would discuss the issue of providing security to panchayat members at the next meeting of the Unified Headquarters to ensure their safety and smooth functioning.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday said he would raise the issues of partial revocation of Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) during the next internal security meeting in Delhi.
Asking the Centre to "act strong" with China on the Ladakh intrusion issue, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday said dealing on such matters should be unambiguous and similar in the case of both Pakistan and China. "The Union government should give clear-cut message to China on the intrusion issue. These kind of situations have always put people living in frontier areas under difficulties, besides hampering development process," he said.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who made a conditional resignation, skipped office and the assembly on Wednesday, awaiting the Governor's decision on his offer to quit.
'The BJP has killed public anger. They have killed people's self-respect.'
Voting for this crucial phase, covering 40 assembly segments across seven districts -- Jammu, Udhampur, Samba and Kathua in the Jammu region and Baramulla, Bandipora and Kupwara in north Kashmir -- is scheduled for October 1.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday reiterated his idea of setting up of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission to probe all the killings in Jammu and Kashmir in the past 21-years.
On the eve of the crucial meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security on Kashmir, The Bharatiya Janata Party demanded the removal of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, saying his government has "completely collapsed" and warned that any dilution of AFSPA would only allow the separatists and miscreants to call the shots.
The crucial meeting of the Unified Command HQ, presided over by Abdullah, lasted over three hours. However, it only witnessed presentations by every stakeholder -- the state government, the Army, heads of paramilitary forces in Kashmir and intelligence agencies -- but no discussions, sources attending the meeting told rediff.com
Voicing hope that President Asif Ali Zardari's visit would mark the start of a "sustained" process to resolve all issues between India and Pakistan, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Sunday said it would be a "forward movement" if the Pakistani leader comes to Jammu and Kashmir.
Making light of Sunday's incident, in which a shoe was flung towards his son Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, Union Minister Farooq Abdullah said it was "wonderful" that he has joined the elite club of former US President George Bush, Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari and other leaders.
Union Home Minister P Chidambaram and the state chief minister, Omar Abdullah Wednesday jointly reviewed the prevailing law and order and security situation at a high level meeting of officers on Wednesday evening.
Concerned over the recent unrest in the Kashmir Valley, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday directed the unified command to come up with a plan in 10 days for the phased replacement of Central Reserve Police Force personnel by local police in law and order duty.
A court in New Delhi on Tuesday granted two-hour custody parole to Kashmiri leader Sheikh Abdul Rashid to take oath as a Lok Sabha MP on July 5.
Referring to Abdullah's comments, Saamana claimed that Congress actively contributed to AAP's defeat in at least 14 seats in Delhi, which could have been avoided.
An Army vehicle skidded off the road and fell into a gorge near SK Payen in the north Kashmir district, they said.
Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi, along with Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, on Tuesday met members of women self-help groups in Amethi and asked them to make use of several schemes run by the Centre for improving their lot. On a day-long visit to his Parliamentary constituency Amethi, Gandhi told women members to take advantage of several schemes run by the Rajiv Gandhi Mahila Vikas Pariyojna and the Union government for their development.
Amid raging controversy over the issue of partial withdrawal of AFSPA, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday said there was ample opportunity to address the concerns of the armed forces and still go ahead with the proposed plan.
A remote village in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri district has been declared a containment zone after 17 people from three families died under suspicious circumstances. Prohibitory orders have been imposed on all public and private gatherings in the area. The village has been divided into three containment zones with varying levels of restrictions. The incident follows a visit by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to the village on Tuesday.
Making a strong pitch for phased removal of the controversial Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah Wednesday asked the Centre to set in motion a mechanism which could guide in repealing of the act from the state.
Political parties, cutting across affiliations and ideologies, Friday welcomed the Kashmir rail link inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, hoping for a boost in trade and tourism in the valley.
