- Farooq Abdullah claimed Pakistan raising Kashmir issue helped keep region safe.
- Ghulam Nabi Azad countered, citing Pakistan’s harm and India’s development efforts.
- BJP demanded police action against Abdullah for his ‘seditious’ remarks.
Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad has criticised National Conference president Farooq Abdullah over his remarks that Pakistan raising the Kashmir issue internationally had helped keep the region safe. Azad called the statement incorrect, while Shia leader and former minister Imran Ansari urged Kashmiris not to emulate Abdullah. The BJP also demanded police action against the National Conference chief.
Azad Hits Back
Reacting to Abdullah’s remarks at a party event in Budgam on Saturday, Azad said Pakistan had harmed India and the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
“I respect Farooq sahab, but his statement is completely incorrect. If anyone is an enemy of India and the people of J&K, it is Pakistan,” Azad wrote on X.
I respect Farooq Sahab, but his statement is completely incorrect. If anyone is an enemy of India and the people of J&K, it is Pakistan. Look at the situation in PoK, where people are protesting for their rights. Since 1947, successive Central governments, from Nehru to Modi, have contributed to J&K’s development, irrespective of political affiliations.
— Ghulam Nabi Azad (@ghulamnazad) October 25, 2026
He also pointed to the situation in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), where residents have been protesting for their rights. Azad said successive central governments, from Jawaharlal Nehru to Narendra Modi, had contributed to Jammu and Kashmir’s development since 1947, irrespective of their political affiliations.
Abdullah had argued that Pakistan raising the Kashmir issue at international forums had helped keep the region safe.
Ansari Targets NC
Former minister Imran Ansari also criticised Abdullah, making an appeal to Kashmiris not to follow his example.
In a post on X, Ansari described the National Conference leadership as “rebels on rent”, alleging that certain political figures were allowed to make statements that ordinary Kashmiris could not.
He claimed that if an ordinary Kashmiri made similar remarks, authorities could swiftly detain them under the Public Safety Act (PSA) or the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
Ansari described the alleged difference in treatment as an example of selective freedom of expression, arguing that political space was available only to a chosen few.
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BJP Seeks Action
The BJP also demanded police action against Abdullah over his remarks.
Party spokesperson Altaf Thakur described the statement as “seditious and anti-national” and called for Abdullah to be booked. He argued that a leader who had taken an oath under the Indian Constitution should not question the country’s intentions towards its people while giving political legitimacy to Pakistan’s position.
Thakur accused Pakistan of inflicting decades of suffering on Jammu and Kashmir through its sponsorship of terrorism, saying the region had endured violence and targeted killings.
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