Srinagar, Jul 13 (NVI): Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday said the legal notice served on him by the BJP was a “mark of respect” and accused the party of hiding behind courts instead of responding to him politically.
Addressing reporters at the National Conference (NC) headquarters here, Abdullah said he had received an electronic copy of the legal notice and viewed it as an acknowledgment of his political relevance.
“I consider it a mark of respect because it tells me that I am a political force they cannot ignore,” he said.
The chief minister said he had made his remarks at a political platform expecting a political response from the BJP rather than legal action.
“I made the point on a political stage expecting the BJP to respond politically. They have chosen not to. They take political fights and hide behind the courts,” he alleged.
Abdullah also announced that the National Conference would issue legal notices to BJP leaders over what he described as defamatory and baseless allegations against the party and its leadership.
He alleged that senior BJP leaders had been making “baseless and slanderous” remarks against the NC for the past several months.
“From now on, we will begin the process of sending legal notices to one particular BJP leader and a few others,” he said.
On the proposed NC protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, Abdullah said the party was awaiting permission from the Delhi Police and expected a response within the next couple of days.
Referring to restrictions imposed on July 13, Abdullah said preventing him and other NC leaders from visiting the Martyrs’ Graveyard to pay tributes raised questions over claims of normalcy in Jammu and Kashmir.
He also questioned the security arrangements for the ongoing Amarnath Yatra, saying the closure of the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway for pilgrims reflected concerns over the security situation.
“We were not talking about lakhs of people or even thousands. We would not have gone there with more than 100 or 150 people. If they feel threatened even by such a small gathering, that discredits them, not us,” Abdullah said.(NVI)
