Srinagar | October 25, 2025
Senior National Conference (NC) leader and Member of Parliament from Srinagar, Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi, on Saturday launched a sharp and unprecedented critique of his own party’s government, questioning its performance over the past year and expressing concern over the growing disconnect between the leadership and the public.

Speaking ti media in Srinagar, Mehdi posed a direct question to his party colleagues and the government led by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah:
“How do I go to the people and ask for their votes? Has the party given us a list of what it has accomplished in a year? What has the National Conference done to fulfill the political aspirations of our people?”

The Srinagar MP lamented that the NC had failed to take tangible steps on major political and developmental issues that were promised to the people after the elections. “Whether it is about Article 370 or the reservation policy — what has been achieved? Our youth are still on the streets, worried about jobs, suffering from unemployment, and increasingly falling prey to drug addiction. What has the National Conference done for them?”

He further questioned the government’s inaction regarding temporary, daily-wage, and Public Health Engineering (PHE) department employees, saying, “How can I face the people when no issue has been resolved? What do I tell the workers who are struggling every day just to survive?”

Referring to a protest held a year ago outside Omar Abdullah’s residence—in which Mehdi himself had participated—he said that despite repeated assurances, the grievances of the protesting youth had not been addressed. “One year has passed since those young people gathered outside the Chief Minister’s house, and yet nothing has changed for them,” he remarked.

Criticizing the government’s inconsistency over the installation of smart meters, Mehdi recalled Omar Abdullah’s earlier statements opposing the move. “Before the elections, Omar Abdullah said that installing meters in Kashmir was not right. Then how did it become right after the elections? Are Omar Abdullah’s relatives, who already have meters, the same as the common people of Kashmir?”

Mehdi’s remarks are being seen as a rare and significant public rebuke from within the party, reflecting rising discontent among NC workers and leaders over the government’s performance and lack of grassroots outreach.

Concluding his statement, Mehdi said the National Conference needed deep introspection and accountability before seeking votes again. “In a democracy, arrogance always falls. We must ask ourselves what we have done in a year that allows us to face our people — and, above all, how we will answer before Allah.”