Farooq Abdullah and Article 370: Discussions about a new book
AS Dulat’s new book, The Chief Minister and the Spy, takes a look at the political dynamics of Kashmir. This book is going to be released on Friday and is already in the headlines. A big thing has come to light in the book – former RAW chief AS Dulat has said that ex-J&K Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah had told him that if the Center had taken him into confidence, he would have helped in passing the proposal to abrogate Article 370 in the Assembly.
On August 5, 2019, the BJP-led Centre ended the special status of Jammu and Kashmir and divided the state into two Union Territories. After this decision, a security clampdown was imposed in Kashmir that lasted for several weeks. Leaders like Farooq Abdullah, his son Omar Abdullah, and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti were put under house arrest.
According to the Dulat, two days before the abrogation of Article 370, Farooq Abdullah, Omar Abdullah and Hasnain Masoodi met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi. Dulat says that Farooq Abdullah told him, “If the Centre had to do this, we should have taken it in confidence. Why did we do house arrest? If there was a need, we would have passed it in the Assembly.”
But Farooq Abdullah has completely rejected Dulat’s claims. In an interview with PTI, he said that all this is just a “cheap stunt” to increase the sales of books. He also pointed out that the Assembly had dissolved in 2018, so the question of passing the resolution would not have arisen.
After the abrogation, there was a lot of tension in Kashmir. Farooq Abdullah says that “no one in Kashmir supported this decision. The matter was taken to the Supreme Court. Why was so much force deployed? The entire Kashmir was shut down.”
The National Conference government has had to face criticism from Kashmiri parties, as they have softened their stance on the restoration of Article 370. The new revelations in Dulat’s book have become an embarrassment for the Abdullahs.
This book can be an important resource to understand the political history of Kashmir and the roles of leaders. But after Farooq Abdullah’s strong denial, questions are being raised on the authenticity of the book. Will this book help us understand the truth or will it remain just a sensational story? Only the readers will decide.
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