'PM Modi removed Article 370 after consulting Farooq, Omar Abdullah': claims Engineer Rashid

Srinagar, Oct 16: President of Awami Ittehad Party and MP, Sheikh Abdul Rashid alias Engineer Rashid on Wednesday alleged that Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah colluded with Prime Minister Modi on the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir.

Rashid asserted that PM Modi consulted with the Abdullahs before making the move. He also alleged that the BJP helped the National Conference (NC) regain power in the valley.

Speaking to ANI, Rashid said, "Omar Abdullah speaks of statehood, Article 370 and 35A... Omar Abdullah is running away from 370. When PM Modi abrogated Article 370, he met Farooq Abdullah 3 days before that... After the meeting, Farooq Abdullah said that nothing was going to be abrogated but it was abrogated and Farooq and Omar Abdullah were kept in a guest house. It seems as if Farooq and Omar Abdullah were on board.

"PM Modi removed Article 370 after consulting with them. All of it was a match-fixing. There is no doubt that the BJP helped NC in coming to power," Rashid added.

On August 2019, the Central government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, abrogated Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir.

In 2005, Engineer Rashid was arrested by the Special Operations Group (SOG) in Srinagar for allegedly supporting militants and was held for three months and 17 days. He faced charges of anti-national activities and was incarcerated in Cargo, Humhama, and Raj Bagh prisons. However, the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Srinagar later dropped all charges against him on humanitarian grounds.

In August 2019, Rashid was again arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). During his incarceration, he filed his nomination for the 2024 parliamentary elections from jail and won by a margin of 204,000 votes, defeating former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.