The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president, Mehbooba Mufti, publicly criticized Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday, October 29, 2025. She accused him of betraying the less fortunate by opposing a crucial land rights Bill introduced by her party’s MLA, Waheed Para, in the Assembly.
Mufti, a former Chief Minister, emphasized that the proposed legislation was designed to safeguard impoverished families who had constructed small homes on grazing lands many decades ago. She clarified that the bill’s intention was not to legitimize recent, illicit encroachments.
Just a day earlier, on Tuesday, October 28, the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly had voted against Mr. Para’s bill. This bill sought to formally acknowledge proprietary rights for residences built without authorization on both government and community-owned lands. Chief Minister Abdullah had voiced strong opposition, stating that approving the bill would ‘open floodgates for land grab’ and encourage further illegal occupation.
Responding to queries from reporters about whether the Chief Minister had ‘betrayed’ her party after receiving their support in the recent Rajya Sabha elections, Mehbooba Mufti declared, ‘Omar did not betray the PDP alone, but all the poor people from whom he seeks to snatch the very roof over their heads.’
The PDP president reiterated that Mr. Para’s bill was never intended to legalize contemporary encroachments on state land. Instead, its primary objective was to ensure stable housing for the underprivileged.
She elaborated, ‘Our discussion centered on the destitute individuals who, having no other alternatives, built modest homes on four or five marlas of state land and have resided there for two to two-and-a-half decades. We were not addressing those who have recently occupied land, but rather those who have been settled for twenty to thirty years already.’
By rejecting this vital piece of legislation, Chief Minister Abdullah has effectively undermined efforts to secure shelter for the poor, according to Mufti.
‘The BJP labeled it ‘land jihad,’ and Omar characterized those benefiting as ‘land grabbers,’ implying that the people of Kashmir and Jammu are land thieves,’ she stated. ‘Our aim was to protect the homes of vulnerable people who have been subjected to demolitions since 2019. By rejecting this bill, Omar has rejected our sincere attempts to protect these citizens.’
Touching upon the PDP’s decision to support the ruling National Conference (NC) in the recent Rajya Sabha elections, the former chief minister of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir clarified that her party’s vote was cast in exchange for the NC’s backing of this particular land rights bill.
‘We made every effort on our part,’ she recounted. ‘We offered our three votes, asking them to accept our support in exchange for safeguarding the homes of the poor. But what more could I do if he simply refused?’
Mufti also brought up the issue of regularizing daily wage workers, mentioning that her party had previously introduced a bill to address this matter.
‘We had introduced a bill for daily wage earners as well,’ she explained. ‘These are the most vulnerable members of society, yet they are the backbone of essential departments like PHE (Public Health Engineering), Irrigation, Power Development, Health, and Education. Many have been working diligently for two to two-and-a-half decades. The government had sought votes promising to regularize these daily wagers and protect land in J&K.’
The PDP chief stressed that the absence of statehood for Jammu and Kashmir cannot serve as a justifiable excuse for failing to address such critical issues.
‘Mr. Omar frequently cites the lack of statehood as a reason for inaction, claiming he can do nothing,’ she concluded. ‘However, he could have certainly acted on this particular bill. They could have alleviated the public’s concerns regarding land rights, yet they failed to accomplish even this basic measure.’