As the National Conference prepares for a significant protest at Jantar Mantar, the real challenge lies in sustaining the momentum for statehood beyond this event.
New Delhi, India Jul 19, 2026 ALN: Srinagar: As the ruling National Conference (NC) prepares for its proposed July 20 protest at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar seeking the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood, the real test extends beyond the event — from securing permission and attracting participation to building a wider post-2019 political narrative and sustaining momentum after the headlines fade.
The proposed demonstration comes amid uncertainty over official permission and the scale of participation it may attract.
For the NC, which returned to power after the 2024 Assembly elections, the gathering will be closely watched as a measure of whether the statehood demand can move beyond political resolutions and speeches to become a broader public campaign.
A sizeable turnout would allow the party to project statehood as a widely shared democratic demand. A muted response, however, could strengthen criticism that the issue has not evolved into a sustained public movement.
However, the larger question for Chief Minister Omar Abdullah is what comes after July 20.
Restoration of statehood has emerged as one of the few issues that enjoys support across much of J&K’s mainstream political spectrum.
Yet transforming that consensus into a sustained movement will require more than a one-day protest. It will demand continued political mobilisation, wider public participation and a clear roadmap beyond symbolic demonstrations.
Complex context
The issue also carries practical significance. J&K became a Union Territory (UT) after the Central government’s August 2019 decision to abrogate the provisions of Article 370 and reorganise the erstwhile state into the UTs of J&K and Ladakh.
While J&K now has an Assembly and an elected government, several key powers remain with the Lieutenant Governor under the UT framework.
The NC argues that restoration of statehood is necessary to strengthen the authority of the elected government and improve governance. The challenge, however, is also about political credibility.
The NC MP from Srinagar, Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi, who has increasingly differed with the party leadership, has questioned the decision to centre the campaign exclusively on statehood.
“The people have not given a mandate only for statehood but for the restoration of their rights and the issues that concern them,” Ruhullah said recently, arguing that the political discourse should not move away from the issues that shaped the 2024 Assembly election results.
His intervention underlines a wider debate within J&K’s mainstream politics — whether the priority should be restoration of statehood or whether the political conversation must also encompass the broader constitutional and political changes that followed August 2019.
“The Jantar Mantar protest will test both the issue and the party leading it. The first challenge is getting attention. The bigger challenge is sustaining the issue after the headlines disappear,” Prof Gul Mohammad Wani, former Head of the Department of Political Science at the University of Kashmir, told DH.
According to Wani, the protest would also put the NC’s political legacy under scrutiny.
“The NC has historically built its politics around the demand for greater autonomy. and earlier promised the restoration of the pre-1953 position. Today, the challenge before the party is different: to demonstrate its ability to negotiate concrete political outcomes within the existing constitutional framework,” he said.
The “pre-1953 position” — a part of the NC’s political vocabulary for decades — refers to the constitutional arrangement under which J&K had its own prime minister and Sadr-e-Riyasat before the dismissal of NC founder late Sheikh Abdullah in 1953 and the subsequent extension of several provisions of the Indian Constitution and Union laws to the state.
Politics behind push
Despite criticism, Abdullah has defended the shift towards a statehood-focused campaign, accusing the BJP-led Central government of delaying a commitment it had publicly made.
In a public rally in May, Abdullah hinted at a more aggressive political campaign, saying: “Trust me, I want to burst like a cloudburst.” He added that he would speak openly after Eid.
The subsequent announcement of the Jantar Mantar protest appeared to translate that political messaging into an organised mobilisation in the national capital.
The political challenge for Abdullah is also regional. While restoration of statehood finds support across much of J&K’s political spectrum, the expectations attached to it differ.
In Jammu, the demand is largely framed around the restoration of full statehood and greater powers for an elected government. In the Kashmir Valley, it is often viewed alongside the wider political changes that followed August 2019.
The NC’s campaign also comes amid criticism of the Abdullah regime’s governance record. Opposition parties have accused the government of falling short on employment generation, regularisation of daily wagers, electricity supply, and delivery of public services.
The government has countered that many of these issues are linked to the limited powers available under the UT arrangement.
There is also a political irony. Abdullah is leading a campaign seeking the restoration of powers while simultaneously heading an elected government that functions within the very constitutional framework he wants altered.
Whether the Jantar Mantar protest draws hundreds or thousands may ultimately prove less significant than what follows. If the NC fails to build a sustained campaign beyond July 20, the demonstration risks being remembered as a symbolic assertion rather than the beginning of a political movement.
The Political Test
Stakeholder The real question
Omar Abdullah Can he sustain the momentum beyond one protest?
National Conference Can it reclaim political credibility?
Opposition Will they unite on statehood?
Central government Will it spell out a timeline?
People of J&K Does statehood remain the priority over governance?
THINGS TO
Does the Centre acknowledge the protest?
Does the NC announce Phase-II of the campaign?
Do Jammu-based groups join the movement?
Does the debate shift from politics to policy?
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