J&K Cabinet Passes Resolution for Statehood; CM Omar Abdullah to Meet PM Modi

Srinagar: A day after taking oath as the first Chief Minister of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, the Omar Abdullah-let cabinet on Thursday passed a resolution for the region's statehood. The cabinet's first meeting was held at Civil Secretariat in Srinagar.

The Cabinet passed the resolution calling for the restoration of the Union Territory’s statehood. The resolution urges the Union government to reinstate the region's status as a full-fledged state, a demand that has been echoed by various political leaders and parties since the revocation of Article 370 in August 2019.

As per reports, Abdullah is planning to seek an appointment with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah to formally present the state government’s demand. 

In response to the cabinet's resolution on statehood, Jammu and Kashmir People's Democratic Party (PDP) leader Waheed Para, who won from the Pulwama constituency in the recent assembly elections, took to X, stating, "Omar Abdullah's first resolution on statehood is nothing less than ratification of the August 5th, 2019 decision. No resolution on Article 370 and scaling down the demand to mere statehood is a huge setback, especially after seeking votes on the promise of restoring Article 370."

Omar Abdullah said on Wednesday that the aim of his government is to serve people, not to inconvenience them. "I have spoken to the DG @JmuKmrPolice that there is to be no "green corridor" or traffic stoppage when I move anywhere by road. I have instructed him to minimise public inconvenience & the use of sirens is to be minimal," Omar Abdullah said in his first post on X after taking oath as Chief Minister.

"The use of any stick waving or aggressive gestures is to be totally avoided. I'm asking my cabinet colleagues to follow the same example. In everything our conduct must be people friendly. We are here to serve the people and not to inconvenience them," he added.

Omar Abdullah had earlier served as Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir from 2009 and 2014. Omar Abdullah, who is heading the National Conference-led government in the state, has backing of other parties in INDIA alliance and four independents. The NC- Congress alliance won majority in the assembly polls.

The NC- Congress alliance won the assembly polls in J-K held after a gap of ten years. JKNC won 42 seats while the Congress managed to win six.
The BJP put up a impressive performance bagging 29 seats. Peoples' Democratic Party won three seats and one each by the People's Conference, CPI-M and AAP. Seven seats were also won by the Independents.