‘CM Omar has not delivered’: AAP’s lone J&K MLA withdraws support to NC govt

Malik, in another post on X, accused Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and his government of allegedly failing to deliver, pointing out that “genuine public service required commitment not justification”.

“(AAP national convener and former Delhi CM Arvind) Kejriwal ji resigned after 49 days (in 2013) when he couldn’t serve the people the way he wanted. Omar Abdullah ji has been in power for over nine months, yet hasn’t delivered anything – not because he can’t, but because he won’t. Public service demands intent, not excuses,” Malik said.

His withdrawal of support to the Omar-led government, however, does not pose any threat to it, given that the government already has the support of 52 MLAs – seven more than the majority mark – in the 90-member J&K Assembly.

A challenge for the government now would be managing the outspoken AAP leader on the floor of the Assembly, from where he has frequently taken on both the J&K government and the BJP-led Centre.

During the Budget Session earlier this year, Malik had been highly critical of the Opposition BJP and the ex-CM Mehbooba Mufti-led Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), accusing them of alleged “rampant corruption” and causing the downgrade of the erstwhile J&K state to a UT. However, he may now have to ensure a working relationship with the BJP and the PDP in case his seat in the House is shifted from the Treasury side to the Opposition benches.

During the last Budget Session, he was allegedly beaten outside the Assembly over his purported remarks against former CM and late PDP leader Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, and for mocking a protest by the BJP members against the NC-led government.

Trouble erupted when Malik was talking to some media persons, and some PDP leaders caught hold of him for his “derogatory remarks”, leading to an altercation. Just a day earlier, the AAP legislator was involved in another altercation with the same PDP leaders within the Assembly complex. The BJP legislators, who were protesting nearby, and were already angry with Malik for describing their protests as “jamawara (crowd)”, also joined in.

Malik has faced issues outside the Assembly, too. In May, he was booked by the police after a doctor at the Doda Government Medical College Hospital accused him of alleged criminal intimidation and gender abuse. He was booked under sections 356 (criminal intimidation), 79 (word, gesture or act intended to insult modesty of a woman), 351 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Malik had previously been critical of the functioning of hospitals in Doda, even raising the issue in the House.

This was however not the first time Malik’s name figured in an FIR. In his affidavit for the 2024 Assembly elections, Malik declared half a dozen FIRs registered against him for offences ranging from criminal intimidation and house trespass to promoting enmity between groups.

In the Assembly elections, Malik, a postgraduate from Jammu University, became a first-time MLA when he scored the AAP’s maiden victory in J&K by defeating the BJP’s Gajay Singh Rana in the Doda constituency by 4,538 votes. The AAP had fought its debut election in J&K last year, winning one of the seven seats it contested with a vote share of 0.52%.

Prior to the Assembly polls, Malik had won in the 2020 District Development Council elections from Doda’s Kahara seat, contesting as an Independent. He then unsuccessfully contested the Udhampur Lok Sabha constituency last year, again as an Independent.

Locals who know Malik say that the rows he has been involved in over the years have played a key role in his rise in politics. Malik joined the AAP in 2013 – a year after he finished his postgraduation – and soon drew attention by flagging local problems such as lack of drinking water and electricity at medical facilities and poor education infrastructure. He was appointed the co-chairman of the AAP’s state coordination committee in 2022.

He also gained support in the aftermath of the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019, when he took to the streets with local issues. Last year, he had also spearheaded a protest against the eviction drive in Jammu’s Bathindi.