Omar Abdullah on Red Fort blast: ‘I think twice before taking out my car with J&K registration in Delhi’

Omar Abdullah claimed that revoking the special status of J&K has not ended the bloodshed in the union territory, and said those responsible for security should be made accountable.

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah. (File)

A week after the car explosion in Delhi’s Red Fort area that claimed 13 lives, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday said the people of the union territory are apprehensive about travelling to other states as they are all seen as suspects for the violent acts of a few.

“In the prevailing circumstances, perhaps parents will not like to send their children outside. When we are looked at with suspicious eyes from every side, when attempts are made to defame us for someone else’s doing, when attempts are made to bring everyone into the ambit of what few people have done, then it is obvious that it becomes difficult for us to leave for outside,” news agency PTI quoted Omar Abdullah as saying at an event in south Kashmir’s Kulgam.

“Few people are responsible for what happened in Delhi (car blast near Red Fort), but a perception is being created that we all are to blame for that and we all are a part of it,” the J&K chief minister said.

Also Read | Red Fort blast aftermath: Chemical traders to second-hand car dealers, Delhi Police ramps up surveillance

Sharing his thoughts, Abdullah said he also thinks twice before taking out his vehicle, bearing J&K registration, in Delhi.

“Today, even driving a J&K registration vehicle in Delhi is being seen as a crime. When I do not have many security personnel with me, I myself think whether I should take out my car or not, as I do not know if anyone will stop me and ask me where I was from and why I had come there,” he added.

‘Revoking special status of J&K has not ended the bloodshed’

Interacting with reporters, Abdullah claimed that revoking the special status of J&K has not ended the bloodshed in the union territory, and said those responsible for security should be made accountable.

Story continues below this ad

Also Read | Delhi Red Fort blast: All in touch with Umar in last few months under scanner

“We want this cycle (of violence) to stop. Jammu and Kashmir, especially Kashmir, has witnessed so much bloodshed in the last 30-35 years. We were told that this will not happen now, and this cycle will end after 2019. But, it has not,” Abdullah said.

The Centre on August 5, 2019, abrogated Article 370 of the Constitution that gave special status to J-K. The erstwhile state was also bifurcated and downgraded into two Union territories – J&K, and Ladakh.