JK CM Omar meets Amit Shah; discusses statehood, law and order issues

New Delhi: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday called on Union Home Minister Amit Shah and discussed with him various issues, including restoration of statehood and law and order situation in the Union Territory.

During the meeting, which lasted for 30 minutes, officials said the chief minister raised with Shah the issue of restoration of statehood to J&K.

On August 5, 2019, the Centre abrogated Article 370 which granted special status to J&K and bifurcated the erstwhile state into two UTs -- J&K and Ladakh.

During the meeting, Abdullah also briefed Shah about the situation in J&K after the two recent incidents -- the death of a person by suicide in Kathua in Jammu, and shooting of a truck driver after he did not stop at a checkpoint in Sopore in north Kashmir.

After these incidents that took place on February 4 and 5, the chief minister had said that incidents like these "risk alienating the very people who we need to carry with us on the road to complete normalcy".

"I have taken up these incidents with the Union Government & insisted that both incidents are inquired into in a time bound, transparent manner. The Government in J&K will also order its own inquiries," Abdullah had said in a post on X.

During the meeting on Monday, the chief minister is believed to have conveyed to the home minister the need for taking people of the UT into confidence and that as the representative of the people, his government should have a say in maintaining the law and order, the officials said.

Abdullah said that the last stages of militancy won’t be succeeded in vacuum, according to the officials.

A strong votary of peaceful Jammu and Kashmir, Abdullah has been emphasising that the situation in the UT cannot be normalised in a vacuum.

The meeting came a week after Shah chaired two back-to-back meetings in two days where the security situation of J&K was discussed threadbare.

"The Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir Shri @OmarAbdullah, called on Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Shri @AmitShah," Shah's office wrote on 'X'.

During Monday's meeting, the officials said Abdullah also apprised the home minister about the business rules which are likely to be vetted by the MHA.

After the erstwhile state was downgraded into two UTs, the law and order is under the direct control of the central government.

Abdullah also discussed some changes in the industrial and tourism policies in order to incentivise manufacturing sector and bring more tourists.