Ex-RAW Chief Claims Farooq Abdullah Was Willing to Back Article 370 Repeal, Sparks Row
In a revelation that has stirred political circles, former Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) chief A.S. Dulat said senior Jammu and Kashmir politician and former Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah had expressed willingness to support the abrogation of Article 370 — if consulted. The claim, made during an interview with ANI, is part of Dulat’s forthcoming book “The Chief Minister and the Spy,” set for release this Friday.
According to Dulat, the conversation took place while Abdullah was under house arrest after the Centre revoked J&K’s special constitutional status on August 5, 2019. Dulat was engaged by the Centre to speak with the veteran National Conference (NC) leader during the period.
“Dr Sahab told me, ‘Even if they wanted to do this, they should have taken me into confidence. We could have passed it in the Assembly if needed,’” Dulat said.
Reacting sharply to the remarks, Farooq Abdullah rejected Dulat’s claim, calling it a “cheap stunt” to promote the book. Speaking to PTI, Abdullah emphasized that there was no functioning assembly in Jammu and Kashmir at the time the abrogation occurred.
“A benchmark of common sense should have been adopted by the author. He should have remembered there was no assembly in 2018 — it had been dissolved,” Abdullah said.
The state was under President’s Rule from June 2018 until 2024, making legislative approval of any such move constitutionally irrelevant during that period.
Dulat also revealed that just two days before the abrogation, Farooq Abdullah, his son Omar Abdullah, and NC MP Justice Hasnain Masoodi met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi. However, he added, they were not informed about the Centre’s plans.
“I asked Dr Sahab and Omar Abdullah, but they said they knew nothing,” said Dulat.
Following the August 5 decision, the region saw a prolonged security lockdown, and several top political leaders, including the Abdullahs and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti, were detained under preventive custody.
Quoting Abdullah from their alleged conversations, Dulat said the NC patriarch expressed deep resentment over the manner in which the decision was executed.
“No one in Kashmir supported the abrogation… Why was so much force deployed? Entire Kashmir was shut down,” Abdullah reportedly told Dulat.
The remarks come as the National Conference faces criticism from rival Kashmiri parties for allegedly softening its position on the restoration of Article 370.
Article 370, which granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir, was revoked by the BJP-led government on August 5, 2019. The state was also bifurcated into the Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh. The move was met with celebrations in some parts of India and criticism in the Kashmir Valley and among opposition parties.
Several petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the move were filed in the Supreme Court. In December 2023, the top court upheld the decision but directed the Centre to hold assembly elections in J&K by September 2024.
Dulat’s book is likely to reignite debate over the Centre’s handling of the 2019 move and could complicate the National Conference’s positioning ahead of assembly elections later this year. While Abdullah has dismissed the claims, the political ripple effects of Dulat’s remarks may continue to unfold.
