Omar Abdullah Dismisses BJP Protest In Jammu, Says Centre’s Interference In State Subjects Led To Dharmendra Pradhan Resignation

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday dismissed BJP’s protest in Jammu, criticising the Centre for interfering in matters that he said constitutionally belong to states.

Asked about the BJP’s demonstration against the National Conference‑led government, Abdullah said there was little for him to respond to. He stated, “They have a difference of opinion. This is what they have to do. Okay? They did it. What else?”

However, Abdullah argues for greater space for states, stressing that education and health fall within the state list and should not be increasingly centralised.

“These matters, whether it is education or health, in the devolution of powers, these are State issues. They feature in the State List,” he said, referring also to ongoing student protests in Jharkhand.

Meanwhile, Abdullah also pointed to the centralisation of the NEET examination system as an example of how accountability has shifted.

“If NEET had not been centralised, Dharmendra Pradhan would not have had to resign. Because examinations would have been conducted at the state level. If there had been a scam in a state, the minister of that state would have been responsible,” he said.

He argued that the weakening of states could not be attributed to one party alone. Successive governments at the Centre, including the Congress‑led UPA, had contributed to the trend.

“This fault is not just the BJP’s. Different central governments have played a role in weakening the states,” he said.

“Leave matters that belong to the states with the states. Let the Centre handle matters that belong to the Centre. This habit the Centre has developed of interfering in the states is the reason Dharmendra Pradhan had to lose his job. Let us do our work; let them do theirs,” Abdullah added.