In Kashmir, a stir over Mehbooba’s ‘review’ of AIIMS

3 min readJun 6, 2026 07:16 PM IST

Former J&K chief minister Mehbooba Mufti’s visit to the under-construction AIIMS project has caused a stir, with the ruling National Conference terming her visit “an unconstitutional step and an unhealthy precedent”.

The party’s social media handles Friday posted pictures of her visit to AIIMS Awantipora, one of two upcoming institutes in Kashmir and Jammu. Mufti was seen holding a meeting with officials at the site of the project and overlooking plans for construction and operationalisation.

The National Conference reacted by questioning the capacity in which Mufti was hiding such a review. Party’s chief spokesperson Tanvir Sadiq said that the PDP “is being reactivated” to counter the NC as it prepares to head to New Delhi in protest over their demands for restoration of statehood and J&K’s constitutional guarantees.

PDP president Mufti is currently not a representative in the UT legislature or Parliament and her visit has drawn notice from others in the political spectrum including People’s Conference president Sajad Lone. “Irony died a thousand deaths today on Kashmiri politics. In a move packed with audacity, former CM Mehbooba Mufti Sahiba chaired a review meeting at AIIMS. This is nothing short of a constitutional crisis. I can’t believe that the CM has not reacted to an event which erodes even further an already eroded power structure in J&K,” Lone said.

Party MLA from Pulwama Waheed ur Rehman Para said Saturday that a government backed by 50 MLAs should not be intimidated by a site visit. “It should be ashamed that patients are still waiting for world-class healthcare while politics continues to take precedence over people’s lives”.

He asked why the project was still not fully functional and attacked chief minister Omar Abdullah for spending “more time outside the state or managing party affairs” than ensuring this critical institution becomes operational.

After meeting officials at the site, Mufti had framed her visit in sentimentality, stating that this project was her father’s dream and highlighted the delay in the completion of the project. The over Rs 2,000 crore project was announced in November 2015 under the Prime Minister’s Development Package (PMDP).

Naveed Iqbal is a Senior Assistant Editor at The Indian Express, and reports from Jammu and Kashmir. With a career spanning over 15 years in frontline journalism, Naveed provides authoritative reporting on the region’s transition, governance, and the socio-political implications of national policies.

Expertise
Regional Specialization: Based in the Srinagar and New Delhi bureaus, Naveed has spent over a decade documenting the unique challenges of Jammu and Kashmir. Her reporting is distinguished by deep contextual knowledge of the region’s post-Article 370, statehood debates, and local electoral politics.

Key Coverage Beats: Her extensive body of work covers:

Politics & Governance: Tracking the National Conference (NC), PDP, and BJP dynamics, including in-depth coverage of J&K’s first Assembly sessions and Rajya Sabha polls following the reorganization of the state.

Internal Security & Justice: Providing rigorous reporting on counter-insurgency operations, terror module investigations, and judicial developments involving political detainees and constitutional rights.

Education & Minority Affairs: Highlighting systemic issues such as quota rows in J&K, public service commission reforms, and the challenges faced by minority communities. … Read More