Srinagar, Jun 02: Describing the National Conference’s June 3 meeting as a floor test, Leader of Opposition Sunil Kumar Sharma on Tuesday said that Chief Minister Omar Abdullah’s paranoia over losing power has reduced governance to loyalty parades.
Talking to news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), Sharma said that Omar Abdullah is fearful of losing power and is compelling his MLAs to participate in weekly loyalty parades.
“This meeting is nothing more than a floor test. Omar Abdullah has started a weekly ritual of floor tests to check the loyalty of his MLAs. The first such test was conducted in the name of the Provincial Working Committee meeting, the second was a dinner hosted by the Deputy Chief Minister, and the third is tomorrow’s meeting of the Chief Minister with MLAs,” he said.
On criticism by the National Conference over his statement that Omar Abdullah would not resign even if relegated to the position of Chief Executive Councillor of a Hill Council, Sharma said that he stands by every word, adding that the past conduct of the Chief Minister proves he would not quit even as Sarpanch or Panch so long as the cavalcade of vehicles and VIP protocol remains intact.
“Is it not a fact that Omar Abdullah repeatedly said from 2020 to 2024 that he would not humiliate himself by entering the legislature of a Union Territory? Is he not the same man who stated in 2024 that he would not sit outside the waiting room of the LG and ask him to sign files? What made him change his mind? Let me tell the people of Kashmir: the Abdullah family has only one ideology-power,” he said. (KNO)V
