Ladakh 'Breakthrough' Spurs Calls For Unity in J&K as Statehood Restoration Promise Remains Unfulfilled
Srinagar: The speculation of a political breakthrough in Ladakh has spurred fresh calls for unity among some opposition parties in Jammu and Kashmir which remains under a dual system of governance nearly two years after an elected government was sworn into office.
Speaking with reporters in Srinagar on Monday (May 25), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti said that the civil society of Ladakh shunned their “regional and religious interests” and put up a united front for holding dialogue with the Union government which she claimed has yielded results.
Following a meeting of a sub-committee under the Union home ministry last week, the Leh Apex Body (LAB)-Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) said in a statement that the Union government has agreed to restore democracy and grant constitutional safeguards to the arid desert region.
The LAB-KDA combine has been spearheading a pro-democracy protest in Ladakh following its separation from J&K and demotion into a Union territory without legislature in 2019.
“They [Ladakh’s leadership] stayed united and achieved a lot. What we are not able to achieve individually, we can do so by putting up a united front,” Mufti said.
Targeting chief minister Omar Abdullah, she said that the political parties of J&K should come on a common platform instead of “getting sucked into electoral politics”. “All the political parties including the ruling National Conference (NC) need to join hands and strive to achieve what we have set out in the PAGD,” she said.
The PAGD or Peoples Alliance for Gupkar Declaration was a conglomerate of different political parties which came together on August 4, 2019, a day ahead of the reading down of Article 370, to protest against the “aggression” and “unconstitutional” attacks on the identity, autonomy and special status of Jammu and Kashmir.
The PAGD which was headed by NC president Farooq Abdullah collapsed in 2024 following months of disagreements between the member parties and a public spat between the ruling NC and the PDP over the seat-sharing arrangement for the Lok Sabha elections among other issues.
“I set up the PAGD which, barring the BJP, brought all the political parties of J&K including the Shiv Sena together to start a process of engagement with the Union government for restoring constitutional guarantees and Article 370. Later, the Union government was forced to invite us to an all-party meeting,” the PDP chief said.
“If people of Ladakh can do it, I think we can achieve a lot if we come together,” she added.
Mufti’s remarks came amid growing attacks on the elected government led by Abdullah who has been targeted by the PDP and other opposition parties in Jammu and Kashmir after the LAB-KDA combine claimed a breakthrough in their ongoing dialogue with the Union government.
Even though J&K’s elected government is set to complete two years in office later this year, the Bhartiya Janta Party-led Union government is yet to deliver on its promise of restoring J&K’s statehood.
Abdullah has been targeted by the opposition for allegedly choosing power and perks of being the chief minister of the Union Territory while taking a soft line against the BJP instead of confronting the Union government over its failure to deliver on its promises.
Referring to the Ladakh ‘breakthrough’, senior NC leader and Lok Sabha MP from Srinagar Aga Ruhullah Mehdi said that it was a “slap on the face” of the political leadership in Jammu and Kashmir.
“If the leadership of a small region like Ladakh can unite and fight together to secure their rights from the Union government, there is no excuse for Kashmir’s leadership. This is the fight I have been urging the leadership in J&K to fight which they aren’t,” said Ruhullah who has targeted Abdullah in the past for going soft on the BJP-led Union government.
Earlier, J&K Apni Party president Altaf Bukhari also called for unity among the political parties while urging the Union government to initiate dialogue for resolving the political deadlock in Jammu and Kashmir.
“People of Ladakh joined hands for their interest and the Union government was forced to initiate a dialogue with them to address their aspirations. Taking a cue from Ladakh, all the political parties must unite to compel the Union government to initiate a dialogue with the people and political parties of Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.
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