Stays silent on INDI Alliance future; says ‘If I say anything then my words are twisted’
New Delhi, Feb 10: Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah met Union Home Minister, Amit Shah in the Parliament here on Monday.
After meeting the Home Minister, CM Omar Abdullah told reporters that he discussed several issues, including J&K Statehood restoration, security situation, governance and upcoming Budget session of the Assembly. “I held a detailed discussion with the Home Minister on the important matters,” he said.
Pertinently, the Home Minister last week had chaired a security review meeting at his residence in New Delhi. The meeting was attended by Lt Governor Manoj Sinha, top security and other officials.
Today’s meeting was Omar’s third engagement with Union Home Minister Amit Shah since taking over as the J&K Chief Minister.
It may be recalled that soon after assuming office the J&K Chief Minister had met the Home Minister on October 23, 2024 during his first visit to New Delhi.
That meeting, according to the officials, was primarily a formal introduction. “Omar had briefed Shah about the situation and had exuded hope that J&K’s statehood would be restored soon,” the officials had said.
On December 19, 2024, the J&K Chief Minister had met the Union Home Minister for the second time and “discussed the restoration of statehood for J&K, and the hurdles faced by the UIT’s elected government.”
In the December meeting Omar, according to the media reports, had sought clarification on the Transaction of Business Rules (TBR) to understand the authority of the elected government across various departments. “There are a lot of issues on which I need to talk with the Home Minister. Currently, J&K is a UT and we are expecting statehood. The Home Minister has a different role in the UT,” Omar had told reporters before meeting Shah for the second time.
Meanwhile, after taking a dig at Aam Admi Party (AAP) and Congress on Delhi elections, Omar Abdullah on Monday maintained silence on future of the INDIA bloc.
It’s in place to mention here that soon after the trends of Delhi polls came to fore last week, Omar took to X and wrote: “Aur lado aapas mein (fight more).”
Replying to a query about INDIA bloc unity Omar said, “I have nothing to say about it. If the INDIA bloc convenes any meeting in future, I will discuss the issues there. If I say anything in the media, then my words are twisted.”
Asked about his recent sarcasm “Aur lado aapas mein” Omar said, “It was my reaction to poor results of Delhi elections.”
“I don’t want to discuss the reasons for the results here. If I have to discuss anything, I will discuss it in the INDIA bloc meeting,” Omar told reporters in the national capital.
Pertinently, Arvind Kejriwal’s AAP and Rahul Gandhi’s Congress had contested the 2024 Lok Sabha elections as allies. However, they contested the assembly elections in Delhi as rivals and led a very bitter campaign against each other.
Omar Abdullah had earlier warned that the INDIA bloc should hold a meeting to decide the future course of action for the opposition coalition. “I have said this before, and I will say it again—someday, the INDIA alliance will have to sit down and discuss our strategy moving forward. If we fall apart like this, it won’t be good for the country,” Omar had said after AAP and Congress openly targeted each other in Delhi elections.
“Even if we have not fully succeeded, we have significantly strengthened the opposition in Parliament. If we continue to break apart, it won’t be a good sign,” Omar had said.
