Even as he himself heads the elected government in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has admitted that claims of “normalcy” cannot be sustained while major tourist destinations like Gulmarg and Pahalgam remain closed on security pretexts beyond the control of his administration.
Speaking to reporters at Gulmarg after inaugurating a development project, Omar Abdullah termed the continued closure of prominent tourist resorts a “failure” and said it was contradictory to project normalcy in the territory while restricting access to its key tourism hubs. He pointed out that half of Gulmarg and Pahalgam remains shut despite official assertions that the situation in the occupied territory has returned to normal.
Omar Abdullah candidly acknowledged that the decision to close or reopen tourist destinations does not lie with the elected government. He said his administration is neither consulted nor empowered to make such decisions, underscoring the limited authority of the local government under New Delhi’s tight control of the occupied territory.
“Had it been within my authority, these destinations would have been reopened,” Omar Abdullah said, adding that the elected government is confined largely to infrastructure development, while critical decisions impacting daily life and the economy are taken by New Delhi-controlled administratin led by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha.
The Chief Minister questioned how long tourist destinations could be kept closed, saying that such measures directly undermine the tourism-dependent economy of Kashmir. He acknowledged that the continued restrictions on access to resorts negate the normalcy claims.
Observers say Omar Abdullah’s remarks, despite his position as Chief Minister, expose the reality that real authority in IIOJK continues to rest with New Delhi and its security apparatus, rendering the elected government largely symbolic while claims of “normalcy” remain disconnected from ground realities.
