J&K people have first claim over their natural resources: Omar Abdullah

Srinagar, Dec 3 : National Conference Vice President Omar Abdullah on Sunday said that people in Jammu and Kashmir have first claim over their natural resources.

He also alleged that democracy ends where J&K begins. According to a press release, Omar was addressing a zonal workers’ one day convention at Tikri in Udhampur. The convention was organized by senior party leader Abdul Ghani Malik while party general secretary Ali Muhammad Sagar, Additional General Secretary Ajay Sadhotra, District President Ramban Sajjad Shaheen and others participated.

Omar said that there was very little for the people to rejoice over the victory of others in the elections held across various states in the country because it has been years now since the locals have seen elections in J&K. "We can only see the spectacle in other states but we cannot have it here. Democracy ends where J&K begins,” he said.

Taking a swipe at the central government, Omar said that people who blow the trumpet of democracy across the world do not allow it to come here. “They have shown that they not just hate the idea of assembly but panchayats and ULBs as well. It's no wonder that they might wind up DDC councils as well. After all, what is the fault of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, that they are being deprived of their democratic right and they are not even being given the opportunity to elect their assembly. On the contrary, crownless kings have been imposed on us, who take decisions related to Jammu and Kashmir but do not involve the people in these decisions,” he said.

Criticising the central government and BJP leaders for misleading the country on the issue of Article 370, Omar Abdullah said, “These people give speeches every day enumerating the negatives related to Article 370 but if I may ask them what exactly did its revocation change for the people of J&K. What benefits did our people reap from its revocation? Contrarily it was Article 370 that gave land rights to our people. It was the very same provision that made the right to free education up to university level possible in J&K. Our people particularly landless, poor, and workers irrespective of their religious and regional affiliations have reaped the benefits of Article 370 while its abrogation hasn't yielded any benefit. People are only suffering.”