SRINAGAR: Rebel National Conference MP Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi has sharply questioned the party's shifting stand on Article 370, warning that Jammu and Kashmir's constitutional rights cannot be traded for the narrower demand of statehood.
In a detailed letter to party president Farooq Abdullah, Ruhullah said the leadership's recent remarks urging people to "stop being slaves" echoed public frustration, yet the same sentiment was criticised when voiced by him. He rejected the idea that his position amounted to "hollow posturing," insisting that restoring Article 370 remained a legitimate political demand-one even acknowledged in the BJP's 2024 manifesto and recognised by the Supreme Court's discussion of its constitutional history.
Ruhullah argued that presenting statehood as the outer limit of political aspiration risked normalising the August 2019 changes, which he said should never become the "new political normal." He reminded the leadership that the NC itself once passed the Autonomy Resolution in the Assembly, questioning why constitutional guarantees had suddenly become controversial. He warned that abandoning Article 370 would undermine protections for land, resources, culture, language and religious rights, and deepen anxieties among J&K's youth facing shrinking opportunities. Elected representatives, he said, must resist "degradation and dehumanisation," not adjust aspirations to what the BJP is willing to concede.
The Lok Sabha member representing Srinagar also referred to what he described as a "disrespectful attack" on him while demanding his resignation, signalling that the dispute had moved beyond policy differences into a wider confrontation within the party. He said people deserved clarity on what the NC truly stood for, and that accountability must precede his departure.
Speaking separately to a TV channel, Ruhullah confirmed he would resign both from Parliament and the NC, formally submitting his resignation on November 3-the 26th death anniversary of his father Aga Syed Mehdi killed in a mine blast. He said he needed time to disburse MPLADS funds and host a conference of MPs in Srinagar focused on restoring J&K's constitutional rights.
His decision followed Farooq Abdullah's challenge that if Ruhullah believed his 2024 victory was based on personal credibility rather than party strength, he should resign and seek a fresh mandate from the people.