Srinagar, Nov. 3 -- Jammu & Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah on Sunday said that the region's demand for the restoration of statehood should not be linked to Pakistan's terror activities, saying that the aspirations of the people cannot be held hostage to cross-border violence. In an interview with HT, Abdullah - the first chief minister of the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir - said the return of statehood must be based on political will in New Delhi and not dictated by Pakistan-sponsored terror strikes such as the recent Pahalgam attack. "Pahalgam was not the fault of the people of J&K. You held Pakistan responsible for it.So are we saying that J&K's statehood will be decided first from across the border and then in Delhi? Statehood cannot be linked to Pakistan's terror strategy," he said. Jammu & Kashmir was stripped of its statehood on August 5, 2019, when the Centre abrogated Article 370 and bifurcated the erstwhile state into two Union Territories - Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. Abdullah said the Centre must clearly spell out when and under what conditions Jammu and Kashmir's statehood will be restored, adding that the continued uncertainty had created frustration among the people. "It was [supposed to be] a three-stage process: delimitation, election and statehood. Now we keep hearing that it will return at an appropriate time. As an elected chief minister with a mandate based on return of statehood... But it is left vague and I don't know when statehood will come. One interpretation is that the appropriate time will be when the BJP is in power here," he said. Expressing discontent over the division of powers between the elected government and the Raj Bhawan, Abdullah said governance had become difficult as key administrative control remained outside his authority. "When you don't get to decide who your officers are, it's not a pretty picture. I can't even discipline officials whose performance is unsatisfactory - they are accountable to those who post them here," he said. He added that while his government had submitted its interpretation of the J&K Reorganisation Act, 2019 to clarify business rules, differences of opinion had delayed notification. He also alleged that postings, including of J&K Administrative Services officers, were being decided unilaterally by Lt Governor Manoj Sinha and that key roles, such as the advocate general, were restored to the elected government. FULL INTERVIEW ON PAGE 4...