Electrifying U-Turn: Omar Abdullah’s Prepaid Meter Push Sparks Public Outrage

Electrifying U-Turn: Omar Abdullah’s Prepaid Meter Push Sparks Public Outrage

Where Has the Free Electricity Promise Gone? By: Javid Amin | 17 October 2025 Chief Minister Omar Abdullah’s government is under fire after announcing a full-scale rollout of prepaid smart electricity meters across Jammu & Kashmir — a move sharply contrasting with his 2024 election promise of providing 200 units of free electricity per month to poor households. The announcement has unleashed a wave of anger and disillusionment, with opposition parties branding it a “betrayal of the poor” and civil society groups accusing the administration of “digitalizing hardship under the…

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Darbar Move Returns: Omar Abdullah Revives 147-Year-Old Tradition in Jammu and Kashmir

Darbar Move Returns: Omar Abdullah Revives 147-Year-Old Tradition in Jammu and Kashmir

A 19th-Century Tradition Reborn — A Step Toward Restoring Identity and Balance By: Javid Amin | 16 October 2025 In a landmark decision that blends history, symbolism, and politics, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has officially announced the revival of the Darbar Move, the 147-year-old biannual tradition of shifting the seat of government between Jammu and Srinagar. The decision, approved by the Jammu and Kashmir Cabinet in September 2025 and signed off by the Lieutenant Governor, restores one of the most distinctive administrative customs in India — one that was discontinued…

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Omar Abdullah at One Year: Promise, Patience and the Politics of Expectation

Omar Abdullah at One Year: Promise, Patience and the Politics of Expectation

Omar Abdullah Completes One Year — Statehood, Jobs and the Credibility Test | Jammu & Kashmir Politics 2025 By: Javid Amin | 15 October 2025 One year after Omar Abdullah’s National Conference (NC) returned to power on a program promising “Dignity, Identity and Development”, the administration’s scoreboard is thin: symbolic wins exist, structural reforms do not. Statehood restoration and constitutional remedies remain unrealized; major employment and police-reform promises are still pending. At the same time the political environment shows fleeting openings — alliance tensions with Congress over Rajya Sabha seat-sharing,…

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Budgam Bypoll 2025: A Litmus Test for Omar Abdullah’s First Year in Power

Budgam Bypoll 2025: A Litmus Test for Omar Abdullah’s First Year in Power

A Battle Beyond the Ballot Box By: Javid Amin | 11 October 2025 The upcoming Budgam Assembly bypoll on November 11, 2025, is no ordinary electoral exercise. It carries the weight of public judgment on one year of governance under Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and his party. Vacated by Omar himself after retaining the Ganderbal seat, Budgam has now become the symbolic battleground for assessing the government’s political credibility, its governance model, and its connection with the people. Political observers are calling this by-election a referendum—a midterm evaluation of sorts.…

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Restrictions Under Review, To Be Eased Soon: LG Ladakh Assures Relief Amid Public Concerns

Restrictions Under Review, To Be Eased Soon: LG Ladakh Assures Relief Amid Public Concerns

LG Ladakh Announces Review of Restrictions, Promises Easing Soon By: Javid Amin | 05 October 2025 In a bid to address mounting public unease, Lieutenant Governor Brig. (Retd.) B.D. Mishra on Sunday announced that the Ladakh administration is reviewing several existing restrictions and will ease them “soon,” aligning with “evolving ground realities and public sentiment.” Speaking during a public outreach event in Leh, the LG emphasized that Ladakh’s governance model would remain transparent, accountable, and people-centric, reiterating that “the future of the Union Territory depends on collective effort between the…

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The Plant That Drowned: Overcare, Silent Suffocation, and the Emotional Cost of Good Intentions

The Plant That Drowned: Overcare, Silent Suffocation, and the Emotional Cost of Good Intentions

The Weight of Water: When Care Becomes Control By: Javid Amin | 14 September 2025 The Plant That Drowned I once killed a plant—not because I ignored it, but because I cared too much.Every morning, I watered it, sometimes twice, thinking I was giving it the love it needed. I hovered over it, checked its leaves, adjusted its position under the sun, and worried over the slightest change in color. But instead of thriving, it began to droop. Its soil stayed wet, its roots gasped for air, and slowly it…

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Kashmir Extremely Vulnerable to Catastrophic Floods: A Decade After 2014, Has Anything Changed?

Kashmir Extremely Vulnerable to Catastrophic Floods: A Decade After 2014, Has Anything Changed?

A Valley on Edge: The Seventh Flood Scare Since 2014 By: Javid Amin | 07 September 2025 In early September 2025, the city of Srinagar was once again gripped by fear. The Jhelum River, Kashmir’s lifeline but also its greatest threat, surged past danger marks at Sangam and Ram Munshi Bagh. Sirens echoed across low-lying neighborhoods. Mosque loudspeakers urged people to move to safety. Families hurriedly shifted valuables to higher floors, while shopkeepers raised goods above the ground. For many, the scenes were eerily familiar. This was not the first…

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Chief Minister Omar Abdullah Reaffirms Commitment to Fulfilling Promises

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah Reaffirms Commitment to Fulfilling Promises

Will Fulfil Promises Made to People: Omar Abdullah Srinagar 02 March 2025: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has reaffirmed his commitment to fulfilling the promises made to the people of the region. Amid discussions about the upcoming budget session and preparations for the holy month of Ramadan, Abdullah addressed various issues, including the BJP’s proposal for a shadow cabinet. No Need for a Shadow Cabinet: A day after the BJP announced its intention to form a shadow cabinet, Omar Abdullah stated that there is no need for such…

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Omar Abdullah: Sealing Jamia Masjid on Shab-e-Baraat Shows Lack of Confidence

Omar Abdullah: Sealing Jamia Masjid on Shab-e-Baraat Shows Lack of Confidence

Decision to lock Jamia Masjid on Shab-e-Baraat ‘very unfortunate’: CM Omar Abdullah Srinagar, Feb 13: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said the decision to lock the historic Jamia Masjid in Srinagar on Shab-e-Baraat is ‘very unfortunate’. He said the decision betrays a lack of confidence in the people and in the law & order machinery. Taking to micro-blogging site X (formerly Twitter) he said: “It is very unfortunate that the security establishment has taken the decision to seal the historic Jamia Masjid, Srinagar on one of the holiest nights…

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Waqf Bill Controversy: Censored Dissent Notes Ignite Parliamentary Clash

Waqf Bill Controversy: Censored Dissent Notes Ignite Parliamentary Clash

Censored dissent notes in Waqf Bill create parliamentary storm; The corrigendum to Appendix 5 of the report was tabled in the post-lunch sitting in the Rajya Sabha by Kulkarni. She had tabled the report in the House in the morning New Delhi, Feb 13: Amid uproar over the alleged redaction of certain portions of the dissent notes in the joint parliamentary committee report on the Waqf Amendment Bill, 2024, BJP MP Medha Vishram Kulkarni tabled a corrigendum in the Upper House on Thursday afternoon. The corrigendum to Appendix 5 of the…

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