Srinagar, May 8 -- The Jammu and Kashmir National Conference President Dr. Farooq Abdullah Friday called out forces stoking controversy over the Urdu language, saying the party remains steadfast in defending Urdu's cultural, administrative, and religious centrality in Jammu and Kashmir.

In a statement issued from the party headquarters Nawa-e-Subha, he said the forces attempting to manufacture outrage over the issue are doing so to camouflage their own historic blunders and political failures, asserting that the people of Jammu and Kashmir are fully aware of who safeguarded the identity of the language and who undermined it for narrow political gains.

Taking a sharp dig at People's Democratic Party, Dr. Farooq said they have deliberatel...