Srinagar, July 18: Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy, Dr Farooq Abdullah on Sunday said the Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah will emerge a “better man” from the crisis in the state, “but he must come to grips with the administration and show the door to officials who don’t perform.”
Speaking to Karan Thapar on Devil’s Advocate this evening, Dr Farooq Abdullah said that his son was not inexperienced. “I don’t know, that is for the Chief Minister to know. But if I was the man I will not tolerate that when you have every perk under the earth to come then you don’t get to the thing--you see as far as I was concerned my Chief Secretary was the Chief Minister of the bureaucracy; my police chief was the chief minister of the security force. I would not interfere,” Farooq said in response to a question on why administration was not cooperating with Omar. Asked if Omar should follow that pattern and style, Dr Farooq said, “I think he should. He should follow the path that is there very clearly. He must give responsibility and those who don’t fulfill responsibilities; the door must be shown immediately.”
Dr Farooq said the foremost thing Omar should do is to tighten the administration “You can’t have administration who have free accommodation, who have got free security, who have got free everything (but) they will not come to the Secretariat. How do you work? Government must see and they must immediately get grips to with this,” he said, “One good thing I must say. I do not accept this fact that I should be another power centre--I am not a power centre. There is only one power--the power is the Chief Minister. He decides, we can tell him (but) it is for the Chief Minister to take action, to look into this. And I am sure this thing that has happened must have shown to the Chief Minister and to the other people who are there on the scene where their friends lie and where their foes lie. Their own weaknesses they must know where they are.”
On dialogue, Dr Farooq said Government of India’s doors were open to everyone. “The problem is that when they open the door and they started talking, you saw how one Hurriyat leader nearly died. That frightened the people that they can be eliminated by whoever agency might be. And therefore, whatever steps are going to be taken, with a great care and a great understanding, and doors have to be opened; doors have to be continuously worked on. The path has to be found with every political party, whether it opposed or does not oppose,” he said.
Asked how critical was for the government to have taken tough steps such as calling the Army out and denying journalists curfew passes for four days so that newspapers didn’t come out, Dr Farooq said, “I think if you look at it--number of steps if we had taken 18 months ago since we got power probably this stage wouldn’t have emerged. There are lot of reasons--let us be very clear, it is not because of things in our state, it is not because of the failure of the government--as people try to project that it’s the failure of Omar (Omar Abdullah, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister) and the Congress and the National Conference. It is not so.”
He said, “We are in a problematic position with our neigbour. That continues to play at times. Now, since the Minister for Home Affairs had to go (to Pakistan) something had to give here, so some of them instigated some things. It was easy because the floor was ready for it. Today, our Minister for External Affairs is there, so there has to be something--so they can say speak, look at this position (situation). So all these things--it is a very complicated affair as far my state is concerned.”
In response to a question on what the cause of anger in the Valley was, Dr Farooq said, “There are a number of factors. If just elections took place in 2002, in 2006 and 2008 and we have an euphoria ‘oh look, elections have taken place and everything is hunky-dory’ it is not so. The problem is still there. We have to still continuously talk, not only to the country which is involved in it on the other side, but also to the people in our state who may not agree with the present dispensation or other things. Be they Hurriyat, be they others (but) we have to somehow roll them in the betterment of the people of the state.”
Dr Farooq said Army Chief should never make political statements. “Army Chief is there to keep silent and his job is to see that the Army is alert and ready, he has not to make political statements and I am totally against any army chief or police chief making political statements. Political statements should come from politicians, who can answer in the assembly and who can answer in Parliament,” he said.
He rejected the speculations that he was coming as the chief minister of J&K. “It is totally wrong, totally baseless, and some of the media people are using this to create uncertainty in the state and in the country. I want to make it very clear through your channel that there is no such thing. He is the leader; the entire country is behind him, entire party of National Conference and Congress is behind him, and even the other national parties, who may not be in the government of India, are behind him to deliver goods for the betterment of the people and the betterment of the country,” he said.
“It is a wrong notion. The day I handed over this to him I told him the future rests in his hands and he must deliver to the people I have not been able to deliver. Farooq Abdullah has done his duty. That is over.”
Asked if Congress in the state was behaving indifferently, Dr Farooq said, “Being the National Conference president I cannot comment on the Congress. What I know is that both parties have to stand firm if they want to deliver to people the promises that have been made. There cannot be two opinions, one from one side and one from the other side. That is not on. The Congress president is here very clear--the present Congress president should be very clear. I don't think that I, as National Conference president, see any other way. I think both of us have to cooperate, have to stand behind this government to see that they deliver to the people the promises made.”
He said “I think with present experience that he has gone through I am sure he must have realised as what is to be done for the future. But don't blame him only, there are so many forces--outside and inside--that are working. But one of the biggest factors that has gone in his favour is that the government in Delhi has stood firmly behind him. I have never seen the government of India stand so firmly when I was the Chief Minister.”

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