Srinagar’s historic streets turned into a political battlefield on a tense day as the Bharatiya Janata Party and the National Conference trained their guns on each other, trading explosive charges of betrayal, bribery, and broken promises.
Alleging the Omar Abdullah-led National Conference government had failed and abandoned its election promises, most notably the free 200 units of electricity, only to make life harder for ordinary people by hiking power tariffs.
“Resign and face the people again,” the BJP demanded, calling for Omar Abdullah’s resignation and fresh elections. On the question of statehood, the BJP said the demand was mere drama; restoration would come, and it would come only by and under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “If the allegations are true, they should not wait to probe and prove them,” they said.
Demonstrations quickly escalated into a raw contest of street power and political theatre. BJP workers, led by Leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma and Jammu and Kashmir BJP president and Rajya Sabha MP Sat Sharma, poured into Lal Chowk before marching towards Jahangir Chowk with one clear target: the Civil Secretariat besiege. Worse, the BJP claimed, thousands of government jobs were given to own people through the back door in exchange for bribes. Sharma and other leaders dismissed the NC’s protest, saying it’s a pure political drama staged to deflect public anger. They rejected allegations that the lieutenant governor is obstructing the elected government, pointing out the irony of backdoor appointments even as the NC cried foul over administrative hurdles. Hundreds of BJP workers pushed against the heavy cordon of Jammu and Kashmir Police and CRPF at Jahangir Chowk. Barricades were breached. The crowd surged forward, determined to burn an effigy of the Chief Minister outside the Secretariat. Mild lathi charges were carried by security forces to stop the march. Scuffles broke out. For a brief, charged moment, the tension threatened to spill completely out of control before forces managed to hold the line, and finally the effigy chief minister was burnt in Jhangir Chowk. Advisor to the Chief Minister Nasir Aslam Wani alleged that restrictions and checkpoints were imposed at multiple locations to prevent people from joining the NC protest, while BJP workers were allowed freer movement through Lal Chowk. He accused the authorities of injustice, saying, “This is injustice. Pressure and harassment will not be tolerated. We will continue to demand our rights and will do so peacefully. Insha’Allah, we will achieve them. Wani added, “But I’m telling you, this is their rhetorical effort to muzzle the voice of Jammu and Kashmir in its struggle for the restoration of rights. When asked about the BJP’s corruption allegations, NC leaders rejected them, stating that all investigative agencies and the police are under the control of the BJP-led central government. Notably, no Abdullha family who are from the NC government itself appeared on the streets, an absence the BJP was quick to highlight as evidence of a hollow protest.
