"Nothing Came Out Of Op Sindoor": Farooq Abdullah After J&K Explosion

Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Farooq Abdullah has made two controversial comments in just one day. The first was linked to the module of white collar terrorists - they were doctors - that the police demolished in Haryana. The second comment was on Operation Sindoor.

Abdullah, who heads the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKNC) and the father of the current Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, called for looking into the reasons why the doctors had taken "this path".

"Ask those who are responsible, why did these doctors have to take this path? What was the reason? There is a need for a thorough investigation and study of this," Abdullah said.

He raised concern about the possibility of another Operation Sindoor happening as a result of the latest terror module bust.

"I hope no such thing [Operation Sindoor] will happen. Nothing came out of it. Eighteen of our people died. Our borders were compromised. I hope both nations improve their relations. That is the only way. I want to repeat what Vajpayee Ji said that friends can be changed, but neighbours cannot be changed," Abdullah said.

It is, however, a widely held analysis that Pakistan betrayed former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee with their move in Kargil that led to a war.

He criticised the authorities for mishandling explosive material after a blast at a storage site at a Srinagar police station killed nine people on Friday night.

"This is our mistake. Those who understand these explosives better should have spoken to them [officials] about how to deal with them, instead of trying to handle themselves," Abdullah said.

"You saw the result - nine people lost their lives. So much damage was caused to houses there. We haven't yet come out of the crisis in Delhi where fingers are being pointed at every Kashmiri. When will that day come when they will accept that we are Indians and we are not responsible for this?" the former chief minister said.

In response, BJP leader Tarun Chugh launched a direct attack on Abdullah, alluding to the Jammu and Kashmir leader as someone who is soft on terrorists.

"Shedding tears for terrorists is their old habit. Farooq Abdullah should stop speaking for terrorists now," Chugh said.

The blast at the police station in Srinagar's Nowgam happened while checking the material as per the mandated forensic procedure, Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police Nalin Prabhat said today, adding speculation over the incident was unnecessary.

The explosives were recovered during raids on the white collar terror module in Haryana days earlier. One of the doctors, Umar Mohammad, panicked on seeing the police action and made a move - he loaded an i20 with explosives, and drove to Delhi's Chandni Chowk. The blast at the crowded place killed 13 people.