Jammu and Kashmir CM Omar Abdullah.
Credit: PTI Photo
Srinagar: Hoping that the Union Territory (UT) of Jammu and Kashmir would soon be a state again, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday asserted he will fight for the restoration of its dignity.
During an interaction with the members of civil society at SKICC here, Abdullah said he was hopeful that the system of a UT will not remain for long, "and we will get our statehood back".
"It is after a long time that the people's government has returned. I have been a chief minister before but the circumstances were different.
"There is a lot of difference between the situation then and now," he said.
The chief minister said while the government will strive to fulfil the people's aspirations about electricity, roads, water, employment or other issues, "but if we cannot live with dignity, if there is no respect of our identity, then all these things are meaningless".
He said he wanted to assure the people that "we will fight for all these things, but what I want the most is to restore our dignity". He received a huge applause from the audience.
The chief minister said the people of JK should have a right on their land, their jobs and "first right on our resources".
"Then we can say that we truly are a part of this country, that the respect or dignity that we should get in this country, has been given to us," Abdullah said.
He said he wants to establish a regular contact and interaction with the civil society. A democratic system has been established now after a very long time, he said.
"This is your government. I have been saying this that this is not our government, but of the people.
"We are your servants. We are here to serve the people and not for our luxuries," he said.