Omar Abdullah urges Amit Shah to announce timeline for restoring J&K statehood

Srinagar, May 2: As Kashmir awaits to regain its full statehood, voices are mounting for Union Home Minister Amit Shah to announce a clear roadmap. Former chief minister Omar Abdullah has called on Shah to set a timeline for restoring Jammu and Kashmir's statehood, which was revoked in 2019. 

Abdullah pointed out that while the Centre keeps promising that statehood will be brought back, there is lack of clarity on when exactly this will happen. He referred to the Supreme Court deadline of 2024 for restoring the status. The NC leader urged Shah to publicly state within how many days the government plans to implement the court's directive.

It has been over two years since Article 370 was scrapped and J&K was split into two union territories. Though normalcy is slowly returning, complete statehood remains a key political demand. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had assured during a recent visit that polls and statehood are on the agenda. But the people want firmer commitments in terms of timelines.

National Conference is confident of winning the ongoing Lok Sabha polls in the region by a huge margin, given its public support. Omar will file his nomination from Baramulla today to seek a third term. He faces challenges from PDP and PC candidates in the high-profile contest.  

With the polls underway, parties and locals alike are keeping up the pressure on the Centre. If Shah provides a definitive timeline, it could help address concerns over unfulfilled promises. The Home Minister's response will be closely watched to gauge the government's seriousness about restoring Jammu and Kashmir's pre-2019 status at the earliest.