Ishfaq Gulzar CNI

National Conference supremo Farooq Abdullah on Saturday reiterated that Jammu and Kashmir would regain statehood and emphasised that the government of India must restore it, as it promised in Parliament.

Jammu and Kashmir was reorgainsed into two Union territories in August 2019 following the abrogation of Article 370, which had granted special status to the erstwhile state.

“Statehood will happen. The government of India will have to fulfil its commitment. It is bound by the promise it made in Parliament when I was a member,” Abdullah told reporters.

Speaking at a function on International Women’s Day, the former Union minister urged women to fight for their rights and play a proactive role in society.

The National Conference supremo also expressed concern over rising crimes against women, referring to the alleged gangrape of a 27-year-old Israeli tourist in Karnataka’s Hampi.

“We have laws, yet crimes continue. Didn’t I say that people have gone crazy?” he said.

“She is a woman, whether from Israel or anywhere else. This should not have happened,” he added.

Abdullah also took aim at the media, accusing it of bias.

“You should raise such issues. Your media never tells the truth. It is scared. If someone wants to suppress the truth, they do it through you,” the former chief minister of the erstwhile state said.

Calling for greater women’s participation in governance, he said, “Men should respect women. We passed a bill in Parliament to empower women but who knows when it will be implemented.”

Abdullah also urged women to take charge in the upcoming local body and municipal elections.

“If women do not fight their own battles, they will not get their rights. Bring educated women to the forefront, those who can fight for you,” he said.

Highlighting his family’s contributions to education in Jammu and Kashmir, he said, “My father gave you free education from school to the university. After the formation of the Union Territory, education is free up to Class 4. I granted 50 per cent reservation in medical colleges but people went to the Supreme Court against it. You will have to fight for your rights.”

Abdullah also pledged to push for greater economic and social opportunities for women.

“In five years of governance, we (National Conference government) will ensure the best possible growth for women in all sectors,” he said.

The National Conference chief also recalled his own upbringing as he called for greater respect for women.

“My father was always in jail or in the mountains. My mother raised me. She made me a human being,” he said.

Emphasising a mother’s role, he said, “When the Prophet was asked who was greater, the mother or the father, he answered thrice — the mother. That is the status of a mother.”

Abdullah also shared his experience as a doctor and recalled witnessing the pain of childbirth. “When I was a doctor and facilitated the delivery of a baby, I witnessed the immense pain a mother went through. I wrote to my mother, ‘Please, pardon me if I ever spoke to you in a high tone’.”

Abdullah further said that men should respect women and emphasised that their contributions must not be taken for granted.