Omar slams CM Mehbooba Mufti for messy administration in Jammu and Kashmir, Valley unrest

Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has lashed out at the ruling PDP and Mehbooba Mufti for the prolonged unrest in the Valley and the messy situation that the state administration was in. He said that if he wanted, he could be in power in the state.

Speaking at an event organised at the India International Centre in New Delhi, Omar said, "If I wanted, I could be in power in Jammu and Kashmir now. I could have planned against Mehbooba Mufti and offered a National Conference (NC) alliance to the BJP as an alternative."

Hinting that the Centre would have been interested in having the BJP ally with the NC in the state, Omar said, "I know for a fact that people in Delhi would be keen on this". While speaking on a host of issues, Omar clearly didn't attack the BJP on the occasion but slammed Mehbooba Mufti for indulging in nepotism as far as appointments to administrative positions were concerned.

OMAR ACCUSES MUFTI OF NEPOTISM IN ADMINISTRATIVE POSTS

He said, "The administration is in a mess, officers who are close to Mehbooba have been given big positions. Only people close to the party, who aren't qualified, have been put in the administration."

There have been rumours doing the rounds of late of a rift between the BJP and PDP, the latest issue causing sharp differences between the two ruling parties being the arrest of 7 Hurriyat leaders by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), something that Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti was clearly miffed with.

According to reports, Mufti contested the arrests of Hurriyat leaders, saying that the move would hamper talks that the government was trying to have with separatists. Reacting on this issue, Omar said, "The chief minister can't arm-twist the Centre to engage with the Hurriyat. You can't force the union govt to do it. If election promises such as these (of engaging with the Hurriyat) are made (when that can't always be possible), the credibility of the government suffers."

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