The National Conference (NC) observed the 120th birth anniversary of party founder Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, the former Chief Minister of the erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir, on Friday (December 5, 2025), pledging to take forward his mission of unity and social justice.
NC for reinstating public holiday on founder Sheikh Abdullah’s birth anniversary in J&K
The Lieutenant Governor of the current Union Territory of J&K, Manoj Sinha, however, refrained from issuing any statement on the occasion. Mr. Sinha, whose office would customarily issue statements on the anniversaries of major political figures, has already scrapped Abdullah’s birth anniversary as a holiday on the official calendar of J&K. The elected J&K Government’s proposal to include the anniversary in the holiday list was turned down by the Raj Bhavan last year.
Meanwhile, the top leadership of the National Conference, including its president Farooq Abdullah and vice president Omar Abdullah — the late Sheikh Abdullah’s son and grandson, respectively — visited his grave to pay floral tributes. Mr. Omar Abdullah emphasised that the party’s founder “lives in people’s hearts irrespective of the fact whether there is an official holiday or not”.
