CM Omar Abdullah condoles demise of JKNC leader Ghulam Qadir Pardesi
Synopsis
Jammu and Kashmir CM Omar Abdullah offered heartfelt condolences on the passing of Ghulam Qadir Pardesi, a former J&K Legislative Council member and senior JKNC leader, addressing colleague Ahsan Pardesi on 4 November 2026.
Key Takeaways
Ghulam Qadir Pardesi , former member of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Council and senior JKNC leader, passed away late on the night of 3–4 November 2026 .
CM Omar Abdullah offered condolences via X on 4 November 2026 , addressing the message directly to Ahsan Pardesi , the deceased's son and political colleague.
Abdullah opened with the Islamic invocation Inna Lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un and closed with Allah taala magfirat farmaye , reflecting the deeply personal tone of the tribute.
Pardesi was among the last generation of leaders to have served in the J&K Legislative Council , which ceased to exist after the region's reorganisation into a Union Territory in 2019 .
The tribute underscores the generational continuity and personal bonds within the Jammu & Kashmir National Conference as it governs the region after its 2024 electoral return to power.
A veteran voice in Jammu and Kashmir's legislative history fell silent late last night — Ghulam Qadir Pardesi, a former member of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Council and a senior leader of the Jammu & Kashmir National Conference, passed away, drawing an immediate and deeply personal tribute from the state's highest office.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah took to X on Wednesday, 4 November 2026, to offer his condolences to colleague Ahsan Pardesi, the deceased's son. Beginning his message with the Islamic invocation 'Inna Lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un' — 'Indeed, to Allah we belong and to Him we shall return' — Abdullah mourned the loss with evident personal weight.
'Pardesi Sb, a former member of the Legislative Council and senior leader of JKNC, passed away late last night,' Abdullah wrote, praying that 'Allah grant him the highest place in Jannat and give the family strength at this difficult time.' The closing phrase, 'Allah taala magfirat farmaye', is a traditional expression of seeking divine forgiveness and mercy for the departed soul.
A veteran of the National Conference's long march
Ghulam Qadir Pardesi was part of the generation of Jammu & Kashmir National Conference leaders who built and sustained the party through the turbulent decades of the region's political history. His tenure in the Legislative Council — the upper house of the erstwhile state legislature — marked him as a figure of institutional significance within the JKNC's organisational structure. The Legislative Council itself ceased to exist following the reorganisation of Jammu and Kashmir into a Union Territory in 2019, making Pardesi among the last cohort to have served in that chamber.
For the National Conference, the passing of senior founding-generation and veteran leaders is a recurring moment of institutional reflection — a reminder of the human scaffolding upon which the party's enduring presence in the region was constructed.
Omar Abdullah and Ahsan Pardesi: colleagues in a party in transition
Omar Abdullah, who serves as both Chief Minister and vice-president of the JKNC, addressed his condolences directly to Ahsan Pardesi, identifying him as a 'colleague' — a word that signals the younger Pardesi's active standing within party ranks. The bond between the two men gives this tribute a dimension beyond formal protocol: it is one political generation consoling another at the moment of a family's loss.
The JKNC returned to power in Jammu and Kashmir following the 2024 assembly elections — the first held after the region's status changed — with Omar Abdullah at its helm. That political context makes the continuity of veteran figures like Ghulam Qadir Pardesi all the more symbolically resonant for a party reasserting its roots.
Point of View
But the specific language Omar Abdullah used — 'colleague' for Ahsan Pardesi, the dual Arabic-Urdu prayers — signals genuine party-family ties rather than mere protocol. For the JKNC, losing a veteran Legislative Council figure is a quiet but steady erosion of its institutional memory, particularly poignant as the party governs a Union Territory that no longer has the very chamber Pardesi once served in. Abdullah's visible acknowledgement of such losses is also part of a broader effort to reinforce the JKNC's organic roots in Kashmiri society at a time when its political legitimacy is being rebuilt after years in the opposition wilderness.
NationPress
4 Nov 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Ghulam Qadir Pardesi?
Ghulam Qadir Pardesi was a former member of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Council and a senior leader of the Jammu & Kashmir National Conference (JKNC). He passed away late on the night of 3–4 November 2026.
Why did Omar Abdullah post about Ghulam Qadir Pardesi?
Omar Abdullah, as Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir and vice-president of the JKNC, offered condolences because Pardesi was a veteran party leader, and his son Ahsan Pardesi is a political colleague of Abdullah within the National Conference.
Who is Ahsan Pardesi?
Ahsan Pardesi is the son of the late Ghulam Qadir Pardesi and a political colleague of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah within the Jammu & Kashmir National Conference.
What was the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Council?
The Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Council was the upper house of the state's bicameral legislature. It was abolished in 2019 when Jammu and Kashmir was reorganised into a Union Territory, making those who served in it among the last holders of that legislative office.
What does 'Inna Lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un' mean?
It is an Arabic-Islamic phrase meaning 'Indeed, to Allah we belong and to Him we shall return.' It is traditionally recited upon hearing news of a death and is a customary expression of condolence in Muslim communities.
