The Centre’s decision to allow 15 foreign diplomats to observe the Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir has angered Valley politicians, with National Conference (NC) leader Omar Abdullah asking why then journalists from abroad were barred from covering the polls.

Officials said it was the first time that foreign diplomats had been invited by the Centre to witness the Assembly elections in the region to placate international concern over the loss of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status and the alleged erosion of individual freedom.

Former chief minister Omar told reporters: “This is a betrayal of the people. If foreign diplomats can be brought in, why not foreign journalists? All the foreign journalists who had applied to cover this election were not permitted. This guided tour, like tourists, was to show them the elections here, which is not a good thing.”

The government had faced backlash after it revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir granted under Article 370 and bifurcated it into Union Territories on August 5, 2019, in the face of massive local opposition.

Hosting foreign dignitaries during the Assembly elections seems to be part of the Narendra Modi government’s effort to peddle its “all is well” narrative to showcase normality before the international community.

Last year, the Centre had hosted a G20 meeting on tourism in Srinagar, which was skipped by Saudi Arabia, Turkey, China and Egypt.

On Wednesday, the foreign diplomats visited several polling booths in Kashmir and some of them who spoke to the media lavished praise on the process.

Jorgan K. Andrews, deputy chief of mission at the US embassy, said it was a rare opportunity to come to Kashmir and see the electoral process and democracy in action.

“We are very pleased to be able to see the process,” Andrews told a local journalist, saying it was a good chance to see the “sub-national level of election”.

“Obviously with Kashmir’s history, it is exciting to see elections here after 10 years,” he added.

Delhi is projecting the high turnout in the ongoing Assembly elections as a sign of approval of its decisions although it is locally seen as a vote against its policies.

The visitors included diplomats from the embassies of the US, Mexico, Singapore, Spain and South Korea.

Omar told a gathering in north Kashmir that the foreign dignitaries had been brought in to send a message that the people of Jammu and Kashmir were satisfied with the decisions taken by the Centre on August 5, 2019.

Omar later told reporters that when foreign officials comment on Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi asks them not to intervene in the country’s internal issues.

“If you do not want their comments, why are they being brought here? People are not participating in elections here because they are happy with the government of India. People are participating despite all that the Centre has done. They left no stone unturned to harass people in the last five to six years,” he said, adding that the Assembly elections were “an internal matter for us”.

A diplomat from Panama said they were not here to interfere in local politics but to observe the electoral process.