^Mehbooba Mufti as Chief Minister of the State of Jammu and Kashmir. The Assembly was dissolved in 2018 followed by the abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A, which made the state into a UT and elections conducted in 2024.
^Gulam Nabi Azad as Chief Minister of the State of Jammu and Kashmir.
The son of former Jammu and Kashmir state chief minister Farooq Abdullah, he joined politics in 1998 after being elected as the youngest member of the Lok Sabha, a feat he repeated in subsequent three elections. He was the union minister of State for External Affairs in Atal Bihari Vajpayee's NDA government, from 23 July 2001 to 23 December 2002. He resigned from NDA government in October 2002 to concentrate on party work.[2] During this time, he took a larger role in state politics. However, his party faced defeat in the 2002 state elections. However, him and his party were later elected in the 2008 state elections.[3]
He became the youngest, and 11th chief minister of the state of Jammu and Kashmir after forming a government in coalition with the Indian National Congress, on 5 January 2009.[4][5] He would serve in that position until 2015, after being defeated in the 2014 state elections. He was the last leader of opposition in the erstwhile state Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly, serving as an MLA from Beerwah constituency, before the assembly was dissolved in 2018 and the state of Jammu & Kashmir ceased to exist as on 6 August 2019 and became a union territory following the revocation of Article 370, which Abdullah fiercely opposed.
Following being arrested and detained in 2020, Abdullah returned to politics first in the 2024 Indian general election, where he was defeated for a seat. Despite initially refusing to run for a seat, Abdullah was elected as an MLA following the 2024 union territory elections, being elected the first chief minister of the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, in alliance with the INDIA bloc. He took office in October 2024.
He is married to Payal Nath[13][14][15] She is the daughter of a retired army officer, Ram Nath.[16] In September 2011, Omar confirmed that he and his wife have separated.[17][18][19] His younger sister, Sara, was married to Sachin Pilot, son of Rajesh Pilot whose divorced news has come recently.[20]
In 1998, at the age of 28, Omar Abdullah was elected to the 12th Lok Sabha, becoming the youngest member. In 1998–99, he was a member of both the Committee on Transport and Tourism and the Ministry of Tourism's Consultative Committee. In 1999, he was elected to 13th Lok Sabha (2nd term as a Member of Parliament).[citation needed] On 13 October 1999, he took oath as Union Minister of State, Commerce and Industry. On 22 July 2001, he became the youngest Union Minister, when he was made Union Minister of State for External Affairs. He resigned from the post on 23 December 2002, to concentrate on party work.[2]
On 23 June 2002, he became the President of the National Conference party, replacing his father, Farooq Abdullah.[23] He lost his Ganderbal seat in the Kashmir assembly elections held in September–October 2002.[24] Abdullah was re-elected as the National Conference party's president in 2006.
In March 2006, much to the disapproval of the centre[25] Omar Abdullah had a one-on-one meeting with Pakistan's president, Pervez Musharraf, in Islamabad. This was the first meeting of its kind between a mainstream politician from Jammu & Kashmir and the Pakistani government, thereby re-enforcing Omar's growing commitment to the solution of the Jammu & Kashmir cause.
On 22 July 2008, Omar gave a speech during the 2008 Lok Sabha vote of confidence,[26] which was praised and won him fans on the internet.[27][28]
"I am a Muslim and I am an Indian, and I see no distinction between the two. I don't know why should I fear the nuclear deal. It is a deal between two countries which, I hope, will become two equals in the future. The enemies of Indian Muslims are not America or deals like these. The enemies are the same as the enemies of all those who are poor—poverty, hunger, lack of development and the absence of a voice".[29] On 6 February 2020 the government of India booked him under the Public Safety Act (PSA) which was revoked on 24 March 2020.[30]
Mr. Abdullah has been appointed a member of the Coordination Committee of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance at its Mumbai convention on 1 September 2023.[31][32] The coordination committee will decide the national agenda, common campaign issues and common program of the country's main opposition alliance (I.N.D.I.A.).
In the 2024 Lok Sabha Election Omar Abdullah was defeated by Engineer Sheikh Abdul Rashid.[33][34] In run up to the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, Omar Abdullah showed unwillingness to go for a seat sharing agreement with other political parties under the INDIA alliance in Jammu and Kashmir, and insisted on NC contesting all seats in Kashmir region.[35][36]He won both of his assembly seats from Budgam Assembly constituency and Ganderbal Assembly constituency and later withdrew his Budgam seat and retained Ganderbal seat.[37]
In 2009, Omar Abdullah was accused of covering up the rape and murder of two young women in Shopian.[39] Many regarded this as Abdullah's first failure, as even moderates felt Abdullah had bowed to pressure from New Delhi.[40]
Omar Abdullah drives Vice President of India Ansari in golf cart at Srinagar, Kashmir in 2012.
Detention
On the intervening night of 4 and 5 August 2019, Omar Abdullah was placed under preventive detention by the Indian Government under Section 107 of the CRPC. This came as a backdrop to the government's decision of scrapping Article 370 of the Constitution of India, which gave the state of Jammu & Kashmir semi-autonomous powers.[45]
After the expiry of the six-month detention without any charges, Abdullah was again charged and detained under the Public Safety Act (PSA) which was later revoked on 24 March 2020.[46]
"The capacity of the subject to influence people for any cause can be gauged from the fact that he was able to convince his electorate to come out and vote in huge numbers even during peak of militancy and poll boycotts," the government dossier continues.[47][48][49][50]
Abdullah's sister, Sara Abdullah Pilot has filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court challenging Abdullah's detention calling it "wholly antithetical to a democratic polity and undermines the Indian Constitution" and asking that the SC secure Abdullah's release.[51]
The petition also includes a habeas corpus for Abdullah to be produced before the Supreme Court.[52]
On 10 February 2020, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for petitioner Sara Abdullah Pilot, mentioned the matter for urgent listing before a bench headed by Justice N V Ramana.[53][54]
On 14 February 2020, the Supreme Court issued notice to the Jammu & Kashmir administration and set the next date of hearing as 2 March 2020.[55][56]
On 24 March 2020, Omar Abdullah was released from detention.[57] Following his release, he demanded other people held under detention be released as well.[57]
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