In the wake of the ghastly Pahalgam terror attack and India’s military action, Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah expressed deep concern over the evolving situation and said Pakistan once again managed to internationalise Kashmir.
He said the Pahalgam terror attack would be a setback to Kashmir’s peace as well as India’s diplomatic stance on it.
Speaking to NDTV in an exclusive interview, Abdullah said the attack has undone years of hard-won progress in the union territory.
“We are in a place where we didn’t expect to be. We are in a place where there has been bloodshed and suffering. Turmoil upheaval. Everything has changed. And yet in some ways, nothing has,” Abdullah was quoted as saying by the publication.
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“Yet when I say nothing has changed — Pakistan has, by design, unfortunately again, managed to internationalise the question of Jammu and Kashmir,” Abdullah added.
Omar Abdullah’s remark came just days after US President Donald Trump offered to mediate between India and Pakistan on the Kashmir issue. India has long maintained that Kashmir is a bilateral issue and does not welcome third-party intervention on the matter.
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The April 22 terror attack in Kashmir’s Baisaran meadow in Pahalgam, one of its most popular tourist spots, was one of the most deadly massacres in recent days. The fateful assault left 26 people dead, including 25 tourists.
On being asked how this attack changed the fate of Jammu and Kashmir, Abdullah said, “At this time of the year, we should have been full with tourists, a booming economy, children should have been at school, airports should have been functioning with 50-60 flights a day”.
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“But now, the Valley is empty, schools have to be closed, and the airport and airspace are closed,” he added.
In the days that followed the Pahalgam terror attack, India launched Operation Sindoor, targeting terror infrastructure across nine locations in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir.
The retaliatory move was followed by a wave of aggression from Islamabad, including drone strikes, missile launches, and cross-border artillery fire. India responded with precision strikes on key Pakistani military assets. After four days of high-intensity conflict, Pakistan backed down.
On the success of the operation, Abdullah said that India may have scored a tactical military victory but warned of a more insidious strategic loss.