The Jammu Kashmir National Conference has hit out at Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel for linking the release of Omar Abdullah to the current political quagmire in Rajasthan involving Sachin Pilot. The rebel senior leader of the Congress party is the brother-in-law of Omar Abdullah and son-in-law of Farooq Abdullah.
In an interview to The Hindu, Bhupesh baghel had stated, “As far as Sachin Pilot is concerned, not that I have been tracking the Rajasthan events so closely, but it does make one curious why Omar Abdullah was released. He and Mehbooba Muftiji were booked under the same Sections of the law, while she is still languishing, he is out. Is it because Mr. Abdullah is brother-in-law of Sachin Pilot?”
The JKNC registered strong objections to the remarks made by Bhupesh Baghel. The party said in a statement that it “unequivocally rejects such malicious, false and politically motivated statements that are used for convenient political posturing.” The party said that Omar Abdullah’s release from preventive detention was made possible through judicial intervention. It also called the statement ‘libellous’ and threatened legal action against Bhupesh Baghel.
https://twitter.com/JKNC_/status/1285189555172171778?ref_src=twsrc%5EtfwOmar Abdullah, too, hit out at Bhupesh Baghel for his comments during the interview. He said, “I am fed up of the downright malicious and false allegation that what Sachin Pilot is doing is somehow linked to my or my father’s release from detention earlier this year. Enough is enough.” He said he will be taking legal action as well.
https://twitter.com/OmarAbdullah/status/1285189866225983490?ref_src=twsrc%5EtfwSachin Pilot is married to Sara Pilot, who happens to be the sister of Omar Abdullah and daughter of Farooq Abdullah. It is widely known that her family was opposed to the marriage because Sachin Pilot is a Hindu man. For a long time, the relationship between and her and the Abdullahs had soured over the marriage but it got better with time.
Recently, Sachin Pilot rebelled against Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot which raised speculations that the state government could be toppled. Subsequently, he was sacked from his position as the Deputy Chief Minister in the state. Currently, a legal battle is underway where Sachin Pilot and the rebel MLAs are challenging their disqualification in the Court.