National Conference president Farooq Abdullah on Friday said lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha wields full command over Jammu and Kashmir, against the backdrop of four back-to-back militant attacks that have claimed a dozen lives and injured many.
Farooq warned that such attacks will likely persist, but urged resilience.
His comments came in the wake of an attack in Gulmarg, where the death toll on Friday rose to five, including a soldier who succumbed to injuries suffered during the assault. The military operation to apprehend the attackers continued for the second day.
The army has identified the victims as Rifleman Jeevan Singh from Sirsa and Rifleman Kaisar Ahmad Shah, along with defence porters Mushtaq Ahmad Chowdary and Zahoor Ahmad Mir, all hailing from Kashmir.
Authorities temporarily closed the Gondola ropeway service in Gulmarg to facilitate the military operation. The attack at Botapathri in the Nagin Valley of Gulmarg marks the first militant strike in the area in quite some time.
Twelve people have died in four militant attacks since the October 16 swearing-in of Omar Abdullah as chief minister and the Right-wing ecosystem is linking the attacks to the return of an elected government.
Farooq on Friday warned that if Pakistan would not stop these attacks, a war would lay the region to waste. He tried to dispel the notion linking the attacks to the new government, at the same time playing down the reports that his son Omar had no authority.
The NC president was asked why Omar was not invited to two crucial security meetings headed by the LG. “The LG is in command. Everything is in his hands. Omar sahab was not here when the meeting took place. To say he was not invited is wrong. If another meeting is held, Omar sahab will be there. He is the CM,” Farooq said.
On the spurt in attacks after Omar took over, Farooq said such incidents had never stopped. “Did they not happen in Jammu, Samba, Reasi? Why do you say it is happening now? It is continuing. It never stopped. They (critics) should look into it,” he said.
