A stunning political U-turn buried in old newspaper archives reveals how the National Conference almost abandoned mainstream politics at the peak of militancy.
(Kashmir Rechords Archival Desk)
Kashmir, February 1990.
Streets under siege. Militants dictating the day. Government authority collapsing. And as the Valley burned, an earthquake quietly rocked mainstream politics—one so dramatic that most contemporary observers either forgot it or never knew it happened!
Newspaper reports dated February 21, 1990, accessed by Kashmir Rechords, expose a sensational political moment: The National Conference (NC) dissolved its entire Kashmir unit and openly backed militants of the Jammu & Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF)—even calling them Mujahideen.
Even more explosive:
NC leaders proposed reviving the Plebiscite Front, the same separatist platform that had once challenged India’s sovereignty over Kashmir.
This happened barely 15 years after the Plebiscite Front had been merged back into the NC following the 1975 Indira–Sheikh Accord. And yet, in the chaos of 1990, history seemed ready to reverse itself.
The Day NC Hit Reset: February 21, 1990
In a press statement in Srinagar, Abdul Salam Deva, a senior NC leader and former minister, dropped the bombshell:
“There is no alternative but to respect the genuine aspirations of the people.”
Within minutes, NC’s Kashmir provincial unit, youth wing and local committees stood dissolved.
In their place: Mahaz-e-Rai Shumari — the Plebiscite Front’s original name.
Deva declared the party’s intent to:
- Work jointly with JKLF militants,
- Follow their calls, and
- Support their “freedom movement.”
The announcement read like a complete ideological surrender to the militant wave sweeping the Valley.
A Throwback to the Sheikh Era
To understand the gravity of this political U-turn, one must revisit the past.
What Was the Plebiscite Front?
- Formed in 1955 by loyalists of Sheikh Abdullah after his arrest in 1953.
- Led by Mirza Afzal Beg.
- Demanded a UN-supervised plebiscite to decide whether J&K would accede to India or Pakistan.
- Dominated Valley politics until 1975.
- Dissolved after the Indira–Sheikh Accord when Sheikh Abdullah returned as Chief Minister.
To announce its revival in 1990—a year of unprecedented militancy—was nothing short of political defection from constitutional politics.
“Follow the Mujahideen” — NC’s Stunning Directive
Perhaps the most shocking line reported from the February 21 meeting was this:
NC workers were asked to unite with JKLF activists (called ‘Mujahideen’) and follow their directions.
This wasn’t political ambivalence; it was political surrender.
At a time when militancy was peaking, the ruling party’s cadre was being instructed to align with those who had taken up arms.
Warnings to Farooq Abdullah
The meeting also issued an extraordinary warning to former Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah:
Do not ignore the “sentiments and aspirations of the people”…
…and do not fall prey to “vested interests,” as Sheikh Abdullah once did.
It was an open rebuke to the party’s national president—rare in any political setup, unprecedented in NC’s history.
Delhi Blamed, Militants Praised
The statement went further:
- Accused New Delhi of adopting a colonial attitude,
- Claimed the Centre had always trampled human and democratic rights,
- And extended full support to the JKLF-led separatist movement.
The militants were praised for:
maintaining communal harmony — a tradition “Kashmir has shown to the world.”
That such assertions came from NC’s provincial leadership in 1990 is politically explosive even today.
Five Days Later: The Dramatic Resignation
If the February 21, 1990 declaration was dramatic, what followed was Shakespearean.
On February 26, 1990, just five days after call for reviving the Plebiscite Front and praising militants, Abdul Salam Deva suddenly resigned:
- Quit the National Conference,
- Gave up politics altogether,
- And proclaimed he had “no affiliation whatsoever with any political party.”
It was a stunning exit at a time when the Valley’s politics were entering a dark tunnel.
In his resignation note, Deva traced his political journey:
- Muslim Conference: 1946–1955
- Plebiscite Front: 1955–1975
- National Conference: 1975–1989
His departure symbolised the disintegration of mainstream politics under the shadow of the gun.
The Forgotten Story That Changes How We Remember 1990
When the NC returned to power later, and even today in the Union Territory era, hardly anyone recalls that for a brief yet extraordinary moment in 1990:
- The party dissolved itself in Kashmir,
- Tried to resurrect the Plebiscite Front,
- Praised militants publicly,
- And formally aligned with the JKLF’s separatist movement.
It was a moment when the mainstream blinked.
A moment when fear, chaos and political opportunism collided.
A moment now resurfacing—thanks to old newspaper archives—as one of the most sensational and politically explosive chapters of Kashmir’s modern history.
