SRINAGAR — Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday said the Centre cannot ignore protests by a large number of youth in Delhi over the paper leak issue and should address the “resentment” among them by having a dialogue.
“At some point, there has to be dialogue with them. You cannot ignore such a large number of youth,” Abdullah told reporters here.
He said when the Cockroach Janata Party held its first protest programme at Jantar Mantar with only a few attendees, some people started making fun of it, saying no one was with them, that millions were on social media, but not ready to come out on the ground.
“Now, the situation in Delhi is before you. A significant part of New Delhi is shut down today. Even last night, tear gas had to be used near the Jantar Mantar,” he said.
Abdullah said there is clearly a “resentment” among the youth that has been ignored so far.
“Now, it is a good thing that the prime minister has stated through his post (on X) that youth are important. It would be good if their concerns are addressed through direct conversation with them,” he added.
On the climate activist Sonam Wangchuk putting a new condition — that no retaliatory action be taken against the protesters — to end his hunger-strike, Abdullah said retaliatory action should not be taken against the youth in any case.
“They are conducting a peaceful protest. If Wangchuk is ready to withdraw his hunger strike on this condition, it is a good step. I believe there should be no retaliatory action, there should be a dialogue with these youths, and their legitimate demands should be acted upon,” he said.
To a question about Union minister J P Nadda’s claim linking his government to the Services Selection Board paper leak in Jammu and Kashmir, the chief minister said multiple papers were leaked at that time (when there was no elected government).
“An inquiry was set up, and the matter was handed over to the CBI. Several blacklisted companies were permitted to conduct recruitment. However, what came out of that inquiry and investigation is something I don’t have an answer to; you will have to ask that question elsewhere,” he said.
Asked about the flood situation in the valley, Abdullah said the situation has eased now, but expressed concern that it was becoming a regular affair.
“Thank God, the water level in the rivers did not rise as much as was feared, but damage has occurred in several places. As you saw in Beerwah, Budgam, around 37 shops were washed away by the river. Instructions have been given to the deputy commissioner regarding compensation procedures. For now, we hope the rain will stop after today, but this is becoming an annual occurrence. Last year, rain caused damage, and again this year,” he said.
He said the government needs to chalk out a comprehensive plan to address the issue.
“We cannot stop the rain and these cloudburst incidents. When I was young, they used to happen once or twice a year in remote hilly areas like Pahalgam, but now there are reports of cloudbursts every month. We need to work out a comprehensive programme to protect our infrastructure and save precious lives,” he said. — (PTI)