Jammu and Kashmir National Conference has reiterated its resolve to hold a protest at New Delhi’s Jantar-Mantar on July 20, saying preparations are underway even though police permission has not yet been granted.
Chief Minister and NC’s Vice President Omar Abdullah, addressing reporters in Srinagar, said the party has directed its leaders to reach Delhi on July 19 and will proceed with the rally “whether we get permission or not.” Abdullah confirmed that despite the recent death of senior party leader Sheikh Mustafa Kamal in Srinagar, the July 20 program remains on schedule.
The rally is aimed at demanding restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood — a demand National Conference says will be a central plank of its public campaign. Abdullah declined to be deterred by procedural hurdles, telling journalists, “If we are not permitted, we know what to do.”
But unity within NC appears frayed. From Srinagar, party MP Aga Rohullah openly opposed participation in the Jantar-Mantar rally. Rohullah — who in recent months has reportedly shown strains in his relationship with Omar Abdullah — said he will not join the protest, arguing that his mandate was to fight for the restoration of Articles 370 and 35A and reclaim the region’s special status. He accused NC of aligning with a broader agenda that he associated with the BJP, and sarcastically suggested Abdullah’s push for full statehood was motivated by political prestige.
The BJP has seized on the controversy to mount a pre-emptive offensive. The party accused the NC government in Jammu and Kashmir of administrative failure and corruption, saying the opposition rally is a diversionary tactic to mask governance lapses. BJP state leader and Assembly Leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma announced plans for counter-demonstrations in the Kashmir Valley on July 20 and said the party will stage a protest outside the secretariat along with people of Kashmir to denounce what it called NC’s “incompetent and corrupt” rule.
Political analysts say the unfolding standoff highlights three simultaneous fault lines: NC’s effort to nationalize the statehood demand in Delhi, internal dissension within NC ranks that could weaken the party’s message, and the BJP’s attempt to frame the protest as politically expedient and hollow. The central government’s response on permission for the rally, and how both parties mobilize supporters on the ground in the Valley, will determine whether July 20 becomes a significant flashpoint in the Valley’s already tense political landscape.
For now, the NC insists its Delhi action will go ahead as planned; rival parties are preparing parallel moves, setting the stage for a high-decibel political confrontation in the run-up to the rally.
