Home minister Amit Shah on Friday asked the Congress if the party supported the promises of a separate flag for Jammu and Kashmir and restoration of Article 370, as he launched an attack on the party over its electoral tie-up with the Abdullahs.

Shah posed 10 questions to the Congress leadership, picking from the National Conference’s manifesto for the Assembly polls next month, seeking to paint the principal Opposition as working “against the interest of the country”.

In a long post on X, Shah accused the Congress of aligning with the Abdullah family for “ulterior motives”, claiming that the party had “repeatedly risked the nation’s unity and security to satiate its greed for power”.

NC vice-president Omar Abdullah on Friday said the seat-sharing deal with the Congress had been finalised for most of the 90 Assembly constituencies but consensus eluded a few seats amid indications that his party was emerging as a major ally. On Thursday, NC president Farooq Abdullah had said his party had sealed the alliance with the Congress in all 90 seats. Sources, however, said its discussions with the Congress lasted past midnight but remained inconclusive. Discussions were held again on Friday.

Listing his questions, Shah posted: “Does the Congress support the NC’s promise of a separate flag for Jammu and Kashmir? Do Rahul Gandhi and the Congress support the JKNC’s decision to restore Article 370 and 35A, and thereby push Jammu and Kashmir back into an era of unrest and terrorism?”

Shah also put out portions from the NC’s manifesto released recently to buttress his point. The NC in its manifesto said it would “strive to restore 370-35A”, which guaranteed special status to Jammu and Kashmir that was abrogated by the Narendra Modi government in August 2019.

Shah seized on the NC’s promise to “encourage dialogue between India and Pakistan” to target the Congress. “Does the Congress support promoting separatism again by engaging in dialogue with Pakistan instead of Kashmir’s youth?” he asked.