The internal discord within the National Conference (NC) appears to be widening, with senior party leader and MP from Anantnag-Rajouri, Mian Altaf Ahmad Larvi, joining Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi in criticising the Omar Abdullah-led government.
Speaking at a party conclave, Mian Altaf accused the NC leadership of neglecting governance and ignoring public concerns while being preoccupied with political debates over “who is with or against the BJP.”
“It will be wrong if I say Omar Sahib is on the right track, that would be deceiving him. He must see what rights and limits he has and how he can better serve the people who elected him,” Mian Altaf said.
He urged the Chief Minister to “introspect and focus on governance rather than rhetoric”, adding that Omar Abdullah should “speak thoughtfully and with understanding” on issues such as smart meter installation.
Altaf further remarked that no “positive political steps” had been taken in Jammu and Kashmir since the new government assumed office. His statement echoed the concerns of his colleague, Aga Ruhullah Mehdi, the MP from Budgam–Srinagar, who has been consistently critical of the NC’s performance in recent months. Both MPs alleged that the government has failed to deliver on its 2024 election promises.
“Kashmir’s political leadership has become consumed by debates over who aligns with or opposes the BJP, while people’s concerns remain ignored. The Chief Minister should be the one talking about the people’s welfare,” Mian Altaf said.
He also criticised the government for its failure to initiate recruitment drives, noting that thousands of educated youth in Jammu and Kashmir have grown disillusioned.
“Many have postgraduate and PhD degrees, but there has been no recruitment yet. The process should have started from day one, with advertisements issued to recruitment agencies,” he said, stressing that it was the duty of elected representatives to raise public issues and fight for people’s rights.
Ruhullah’s Sharp Criticism Of Omar Abdullah
Earlier at the same event, Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi took aim at Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, saying his recent remarks on the reservation issue were “shocking.”
“These are the people who elected him, yet he is going against them instead of working for their betterment,” Ruhullah said.
He recalled that during the 2024 election campaign, the NC had promised to restore what was taken from the people in 2019 and to “fight for everything.” Now, however, the party in power appears to be “compromising” and limiting its struggle to the restoration of statehood.
Ruhullah also accused the NC leadership of hypocrisy, stating that before the elections they had criticised other parties for having ties with the BJP and supporting the 5 August 2019 decisions, but were now “following the same path as BJP allies.”
He said that the reservation issue should have been treated as a top government priority, lamenting that “nothing concrete is being done.”
“NC is going against what it promised during the election campaign. What will I tell the people of Budgam if I go there for campaigning again?” he asked.
“People voted in 2024 for the NC to fight against the BJP rule that made them feel suffocated. But instead, the elected CM is saying, ‘I’m not afraid of the people’, that’s shocking and unexpected.”
Ruhullah added that Omar Abdullah should be directing his strong words towards Delhi, not his own voters.
“‘I’m not afraid of anyone, ’ he should have said this to Delhi, not to the people who elected him, hoping for some relief,” he remarked.
Political Implications
The open criticism from two senior MPs underscores a growing rift within the National Conference, raising questions about unity in the party’s ranks. The public airing of grievances, observers say, further erodes trust in the NC’s leadership and contributes to a wider perception of political self-interest.
As the NC struggles to contain internal dissent, rival parties may seek to exploit the turmoil. Notably, in June, Aga Ruhullah Mehdi hinted at the possibility of forming a new political front, signalling the potential emergence of an alternative force that could challenge the Abdullah family’s decades-old dominance in Jammu and Kashmir politics.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: ZEE News
