Took bullets for India, ready to face them again: Farooq Abdullah

National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah on Tuesday said his party had “taken bullets for India” and was prepared to face them again if required, rejecting allegations by the BJP that the NC seeks to revive stone-pelting and terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a two-day convention of NC block presidents and secretaries here, the former chief minister dismissed the charge attributed to a senior BJP leader that the NC and the PDP thrive on unrest. “Tell him that those who want to create disturbance are them, not us. We have taken bullets for staying with India, and we are ready to take them again if needed,” Abdullah said.

He also rejected demands for a fresh bifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir, calling such suggestions “foolish and ignorant”. Abdullah said his party had never supported the separation of Ladakh and expressed hope that the region, made a separate Union Territory in 2019, would eventually be reunited with the former state.

“We never wanted to separate Ladakh. What benefit did Ladakh receive? Even the people of Ladakh say today that they do not want Union Territory status and want to return to the state,” he said.

Abdullah ruled out the creation of additional districts in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and opposed demands for separate divisions for the Pir Panjal and Chenab valleys. He described these proposals as part of the Dixon Plan, a 1950 proposal by Sir Owen Dixon, a United Nations representative, to resolve the Jammu and Kashmir dispute.

“The Dixon Plan is very old. It proposed division along the Chenab to form a greater Kashmir. Parmar Sahib opposed it. Many people want to break the state, but they will never succeed,” he said, adding that the existing districts were adequate and required better administration rather than further division.

Commenting on calls for statehood for Jammu following its separation from Kashmir—supported by Peoples Conference chief Sajad Gani Lone and former Srinagar mayor Junaid Mattoo—Abdullah said the NC had never entertained such ideas.

Responding to remarks by PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti on unemployment, Abdullah questioned her record as chief minister and that of her father, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, saying criticism of others should be accompanied by introspection.

On foreign policy, Abdullah referred to reports of US President Donald Trump inviting Prime Minister Narendra Modi to be part of a proposed ‘Board of Peace’ on Gaza. He said the two leaders shared a long-standing relationship and expressed hope that any recent strains would be resolved.

Asked about dialogue with Pakistan, Abdullah accused sections of the media of having “Pakistan phobia” and recalled former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s remark that neighbours cannot be changed. He added that recklessness was not confined to any one country.