3 min readSrinagarJul 27, 2026 07:20 PM IST
Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said Monday that the comments made by PDP president Mehbooba Mufti in New Delhi were regrettable and accused her of justifying the use of violence against the people of J&K.
During her visit to Jantar Mantar on the sidelines of the Cockroach Janata Party-led protest last week, Mufti, while commenting on the lathicharge and use of pellet guns against protesting students, had said this is the first time we have witnessed scenes like this in the capital.
“We have seen this in Kashmir for many years, but there is militancy in Kashmir, uska banta hai, that there are militants on one side and security forces on the other. The students here are unarmed and non-violent,” she said.
The former chief minister’s “banta hai” remark faced criticism from the ruling National Conference. On Monday, Omar also pointed out that Mufti did not visit Jantar Mantar when she was invited to participate in the NC’s march for statehood on July 20. However, “she chose to go to Delhi and justify the use of force and arbitrary arrests in J&K”.
“If there is militancy here, should the rule of law not apply? Should people’s passports be impounded? I don’t understand this ‘banta hai’,” he said.
The PDP had, in turn, argued that the video was “doctored” and her comments taken out of context. However, speaking to reporters on Monday, the chief minister said:
“If Mufti had, at some point, realised that what she said was not taken well by the people, she could have apologised. This would not diminish her stature,” he alleged.
Story continues below this ad
Instead, Omar alleged, “they chose to rub salt in the wound, with one of her MLAs suggesting that this video is (edited through) AI.
“Are we that foolish, that the media of the whole country was there? You can see the mics of multiple channels in that video. They doubt the intelligence of the people here. It is regrettable,” he said.
A former chief minister seems to be justifying the use of force to quell protests by the people. “After this, which Kashmiri will come to fight for their rights?” he said.
Emphasising that Mufti should accept that what she said was wrong, Omar said: “She has never apologised to the people for their alliance with the BJP in 2015. She has never expressed regret over the violence perpetrated during the turmoil of 2016, and now, she has said ‘ye toh banta hai’.”