Mehbooba, Lone stayed silent on quota row when it mattered: Omar Abdullah

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has taken a swipe at Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti and People’s Conference leader Sajad Lone, accusing them of remaining silent on the issue of reservations in government recruitment when they had the opportunity to speak up.

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Speaking to mediapersons in Jammu, Omar responded to the recent criticism by Mufti and Lone over the cabinet sub-committee formed to examine the reservation policy.

“Mehbooba Mufti chose silence when it suited her. During the Lok Sabha elections, as she was contesting from Anantnag and needed votes from Rajouri and Poonch, she banned her party leaders from speaking on the reservation issue,” Omar alleged.

Taking aim at Sajad Lone, the Chief Minister said, “For five years, he remained close to the administration. While we were evicted from government accommodation, he continued to stay in a government house. Why didn’t he raise the reservation issue then?”

Omar defended the government’s move to form a cabinet sub-committee, saying, “If I wasn’t serious about the issue, the sub-committee would not have been constituted. It completed its work within the stipulated six months. The report has been submitted and is currently under examination by the Law Department. We will act upon it once their comments are received.”

Reacting to Omar’s remarks, PDP leader and Mehbooba’s daughter, Iltija Mufti in a post on X stated: “In response to Omar Sahab’s allegations about Mehbooba Ji’s silence on the issue of open merit students during elections, I don’t wish to politicise the issue but would respectfully remind him of SRO 49 issued during her tenure as Chief Minister which reserved 75% seats for the open merit category. You, on the other hand, have made false promises which remain unfulfilled to this day. So if your intention is genuine, simply implement what she had already done and walk the talk.”

Sajad Lone also refuted the allegations, telling reporters that there was “ambiguity” in the solution being offered by the Omar-led government.