MP Ruhullah’s defiant stance gives Opposition ammo to target NC

The defiant actions of National Conference (NC) Member of Parliament from Srinagar, Aga Ruhullah Mehdi, against his own party’s leadership have provided ammunition for opposition parties in the Kashmir valley to target Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.

Ruhullah, who represents the politically significant Srinagar Lok Sabha seat, has been causing embarrassment for both Omar Abdullah and National Conference President Dr Farooq Abdullah by publicly opposing policies of the Jammu and Kashmir government, which has been in power for less than three months.

His actions have become a topic of political discourse in the Kashmir valley, as he has strained his relationship with the Abdullah family, who had handpicked him to contest the recent Lok Sabha election from Srinagar, a seat traditionally held by the Abdullahs for many years.

On December 23, Ruhullah led a protest of students against the reservation policy of the J&K administration, staging a demonstration in front of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah’s residence in Srinagar, where he demanded the scrapping of the policy.

Notably, many opposition leaders, including PDP MLA Waheed ur Rehman and Iltija Mufti, were present among the protesters.

Even the party’s own leaders have criticised Ruhullah for going against the interests of the NC. NC MLA Salman Sagar publicly reprimanded Ruhullah, stating that no one is bigger than the party.

Ruhullah’s dissent has been visible on multiple issues over time. The deteriorating relationship between him and Omar Abdullah became even more apparent during a recent press conference when Abdullah expressed hope that Ruhullah would raise the issue of statehood restoration in Parliament.

Ruhullah, however, quickly countered by stating that the fight was for the restoration of Article 370 instead.