Terror-free J&K not possible until Pakistan rethinks strategy: CM

Srinagar, Jul 20: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah Sunday said that Pakistan’s “inimical intentions” remain the most formidable challenge in achieving a terror-free J&K, cautioning Islamabad that India now views any terror attack as an “act of war”.

CM Omar dismissed the narrative that the abrogation of Article 370 was the solution to terrorism in the region, asserting that the recent Pahalgam attack, which claimed 26 lives, had starkly proven this false.

“No matter what we do, if Pakistan’s intent is inimical, then we will never fully achieve a terror-free J&K. And I think Pahalgam has proven that,” he said.

“The BJP tried very hard to sell this narrative that terror in J&K was the result of Article 370. We know that’s not true. Terror in J&K is the result of Pakistan’s intentions. And therefore, that’s why the removal of Article 370 did not stop terror in J&K,” the CM said.

He emphasised that the onus was now on Pakistan to reassess its strategy and highlighted a critical shift in New Delhi’s posture, warning that the Indian government had set a “very low bar” for what constitutes an act of aggression.

“The biggest challenge will be to convince Pakistan that its support for these sorts of activities is bad for us, but also bad for Pakistan,” CM Omar said. “And given now the sort of very low bar that the Centre has set, that any attack will be seen as an act of war, Pakistan needs to seriously think about whether it wants to plunge the neighbourhood into a war.”

On the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people, mainly tourists, he acknowledged Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha’s admission of a “security and intelligence failure” and termed it a positive first step.

However, the CM asserted that it was “not good enough.”

He said, “Twenty-six people died. Twenty-six innocent people were brutally murdered. Where were the lapses? This Pahalgam incident brought two nations, two nuclear powers, to war. As a first step, it is appreciable that the LG has said that he is responsible. But down the chain of command, accountability has to be fixed, since we know now that it was a security and intelligence lapse. The next step would be to fix responsibility, and then heads must roll.”

CM Omar expressed optimism on whether his government could balance the fragile peace with the vital need to revive tourism post Pahalgam attack, saying, “We have to trust our forces to do what is right and to ensure that any gaps that have been identified as a result of Pahalgam are plugged.”

He stressed about his government’s push to restart tourism, saying, “Tourism is an important part of J&K’s economy”.

The CM said that it provides a vast number of jobs, and as J&K appeals as a destination, people genuinely want to visit.

He said that the recent, gradual return of tourists was a heartening sign, a testament to the active efforts of his government to participate in events across the country to bring them back.

About the security audit of tourist spots, CM Omar said, “Not that it should be done, it is being done and those have gradually started to be reopened, and I am hopeful that after Amarnath Yatra, most of the other ones that are closed will also be reopened.”

He said that the closures were an anomaly.

“We have never had tourist destinations closed,” the CM said with a hint of disbelief in his voice. “Even in the worst of days, tourist destinations were not closed.”

He presented a stark choice.

“Either the situation was now far worse than it had been 10 or 15 years ago, which he believed was not the case, or a considered decision needed to be made. If that’s not the case, then we need to sort of take a considered decision, and post-Amarnath Yatra, start reopening all the closed areas,” CM Omar said, making it clear that a return to a full sense of normalcy was both necessary and long overdue.