Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah. File | Photo Credit: PTI The story so far: Ruling National Conference (NC), which has ruled Jammu and Kashmir for around four decades, witnessed a rare political upheaval on October 30.

A four-hour meeting was held by at least 17 legislators of the party at the residence of Qaiser Jamsheed Lone, a two-time legislator from north Kashmir’s Lolab constituency.The meeting assumed significance because old guard of the NC and loyalists of NC president Dr. Farooq Abdullah too were present among those who publicly expressed displeasure over a series of developments within the party.

Among senior legislators were prominent faces like Hasnain Masoodi, Mubarak Gul, Nazir Gurezi, Abdul Majeed Larmi, Hilal Lone etc.The meeting culminated in a joint resolution on “mending the party affairs” and debated the recent expansion of the Cabinet by J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, from five to eight ministerial berths. NC has 42 legislators in the 90-member Assembly and has an additional support of around eight others too.What sparked dismay among NC legislators?A heartburn among a sizable number of the NC legislators started on October 27 when the Chief Minister announced the induction of four new faces into the Cabinet and also reshuffled the portfolios.

While four new NC legislators, including Shamima Firdous, Ali Muhammad Sagar, Mir Saifullah and Altaf Kalloo, got ministries, four other Ministers who served the Cabinet for the past two years were also retained.Both the induction as well as reshuffle triggered an open rebellion within the party. Mr.

Gul, a seven-time legislator from Srinagar’s Eidgah constituency, claimed to be ignored “despite being a rightful claimant for a ministerial berth from a seat that saw no Minister since 1947”.Mr. Larmi and Mr.

Gurezi too registered their protest by staying away from the post-reshuffle dinner organised by NC president Dr. Farooq Abdullah in Srinagar.

Dr. Farooq Abdullah’s offer of the general secretary post to Mr.

Gul failed to placate the brewing tsunami within the disgruntled legislators.Concerns raised by aggrieved NC legislatorsA resolution passed by 17 legislators has been forwarded to Dr. Farooq Abdullah for an action within 15 days.

It has highlighted a culture of coterie dominating the decision making within the party. Two names, both close friends of the junior Abdullah, were repeatedly taken.

It included Nasir Aslam Wani, currently an advisor of the Chief Minister, and Shami Oberio, a Member of Parliament. The dismayed legislators accused the two of influencing Mr.

Omar Abdullah to take decisions in an undemocratic way, citing examples of names for the Cabinet expansion and portfolio distribution.The legislators accused Mr. Omar Abdullah and his close confidantes are eroding the culture of consultation in the party by imposing decisions from the top.

Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary is also in the crosshairs of these legislators. Most NC legislators have accused Mr.

Choudhary, a Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) from Jammu’s Nowshera, of “unfair implementation of development works and poor allocation of funds in NC-led constituencies, especially in the Kashmir valley”.Mr. Omar Abdullah’s decision to allocate Public Works Department (PWD) to Mr.

Choudhary was objected to by the dissenting legislators also. In a joint resolution, NC MLAs also highlighted the party’s poor performance on implementing the 2024 election manifesto and meek response to the Centre’s denial of Statehood to J&K.What’s the NC’s response?The NC has gone into a firefight mode.

It’s for the first time since the 1984 debacle that saw around 13 NC lawmakers defecting the then Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah’s Government and throwing their weight behind Ghulam Mohammad Shah.The first response from the party has been to downplay the event as “a part of internal democracy”. NC provincial president Showkat Dar sees nothing unusual in NC lawmakers discussing “concerns and future challenges” of the party.

He also expressed satisfaction over the fact that no disgruntled NC MLAs named the Abdullahs either in the resolution or in their statement. Mr.

Dar termed the meeting of 17 MLAs as a routine meeting and not a rebellion”. He also reached out to the unhappy lawmakers by saying that expecting to become a Minister was a natural thing.

People have expectations, particularly from those who have won elections repeatedly, said Mr. Dar.The fact remains that the party, which came to power with a thumping majority in 2024, is rattled by this latest event, which has exposed a weak link in an otherwise well-knitted party.

It also coincided with NC Member of Parliament Aga Syed Ruhullah planning to resign from the party and the Parliament on November 3, almost for the same reasons highlighted by the NC MLAs, “which is poor performance” of the Abdullah government. Published - November 02, 2026 11:41 am IST