NC MLA accuses J&K Deputy CM Surinder Choudhary of fund bias, betraying Omar Abdullah
Synopsis
A ruling NC MLA has gone public with explosive charges against J&K Deputy CM Surinder Choudhary — alleging he funnelled the bulk of Rajouri district's development funds into his own Nowshera constituency and defied a direct CM directive to fix the problem. The public break is the sharpest intra-party rupture in the Omar Abdullah government so far.
Key Takeaways
NC MLA Javaid Iqbal Choudhary publicly accused Deputy CM Surinder Choudhary of betraying CM Omar Abdullah's trust on 30 June 2025 .
Out of ₹33.71 crore spent under SASCI in 2025-26 , ₹21.47 crore was allegedly channelled to the Deputy CM's Nowshera constituency.
Bridges worth ₹137 crore were sanctioned in Nowshera alone, with no bridges sanctioned in other segments of Rajouri district , according to the MLA.
CM Omar Abdullah had directed Surinder Choudhary at a Dachigam meeting on 3 June to rectify fund allocation irregularities — a directive the MLA says was ignored.
The Deputy CM is allegedly threatening NC MLAs with expulsion if they speak against him, according to the legislator.
A ruling National Conference (NC) legislator on Tuesday, 30 June publicly accused Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary of colluding with the party's political rivals and betraying the trust of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah — the most direct intra-party challenge to the Deputy CM since the NC-led government took office.
What the MLA Alleged
Budhal MLA Javaid Iqbal Choudhary charged that the Deputy Chief Minister had defied a direct instruction from Omar Abdullah to correct irregularities in fund allocation. He said that instead of acting on the CM's directive — issued during a meeting at Dachigam on 3 June — Surinder Choudhary chose to align with rivals of the NC to 'teach a lesson' to those who had spoken out against him.
'What the Deputy CM did is shocking! He didn't rectify the mistakes but instead joined hands with our rivals to teach us a lesson for speaking against him,' the MLA said.
The legislator further alleged that Surinder Choudhary has been threatening fellow NC MLAs with expulsion from the party if they raise their voice against him — a charge that, if substantiated, would represent a serious breach of internal party discipline.
The Fund Diversion Charges
The most pointed allegations concern the disproportionate channelling of district development funds to the Deputy CM's own constituency, Nowshera, at the expense of the rest of Rajouri district.
According to Javaid Iqbal Choudhary, out of a total ₹33.71 crore expenditure under the SASCI scheme in 2025-26, ₹21.47 crore — nearly two-thirds — was utilised in the Nowshera segment alone. An additional ₹9.22 crore allocated to Rajouri district under the same scheme was allegedly diverted to Nowshera as well.
Under the Non-Functional Buildings scheme in 2025-26, the MLA claimed that ₹1.03 crore out of a total ₹1.28 crore utilised went exclusively to the Deputy CM's segment. He also alleged that works worth ₹200 crore under the UT Capex Budget have been accorded administrative approval for 2025-26, with bridges worth ₹137 crore sanctioned solely in Nowshera — 'not a single bridge has been sanctioned in other segments,' he said.
Background: The Dachigam Meeting
The dispute traces back to a meeting convened by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah at Dachigam on 3 June, where at least two NC MLAs reportedly raised concerns about the Deputy CM's conduct. According to party sources, a Valley-based NC MLA had accused Surinder Choudhary of attempting to victimise a government official linked to that legislator. The CM had reportedly directed the Deputy CM to address the grievances — a directive that, according to Javaid Iqbal Choudhary, was not acted upon.
Notably, this is the first time the dissent has spilled into the public domain, suggesting that internal channels have not resolved the dispute.
What Happens Next
The NC leadership has not issued a formal response to the allegations as of Tuesday evening. The charges place Omar Abdullah in a delicate position: acting against his Deputy CM risks fracturing the coalition arithmetic in Jammu, while inaction could embolden further dissent within the party's legislative ranks. All eyes are now on whether the CM calls another meeting or allows the matter to be addressed through party channels.
Point of View
Yet it took nearly four weeks after the Dachigam meeting for a legislator to go on record — suggesting the party's internal grievance mechanism has failed. For Omar Abdullah, the geometry is uncomfortable: Surinder Choudhary's base in Jammu is electorally critical, but tolerating allegations of systematic fund diversion and MLA intimidation undermines the government's credibility on governance. The specific figures cited — ₹21.47 crore of ₹33.71 crore to a single constituency — are precise enough to be verifiable, which means the CM's office cannot simply let this pass as factional noise. The question is whether accountability follows, or whether coalition compulsions win out.
NationPress
30 Jun 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What has NC MLA Javaid Iqbal Choudhary accused J&K Deputy CM Surinder Choudhary of?
He has accused the Deputy CM of diverting a disproportionate share of Rajouri district's development funds to his own Nowshera constituency, defying a CM directive to correct the irregularities, and threatening NC MLAs with expulsion if they speak against him.
What specific fund diversion figures were cited?
The MLA alleged that ₹21.47 crore of the ₹33.71 crore spent under the SASCI scheme in 2025-26 went to Nowshera, and that bridges worth ₹137 crore were sanctioned solely in the Deputy CM's constituency with none in other segments of Rajouri district.
What happened at the Dachigam meeting on 3 June?
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah convened a meeting at Dachigam on 3 June where at least two NC MLAs raised concerns about the Deputy CM's conduct. The CM reportedly directed Surinder Choudhary to address the fund allocation irregularities, but the MLA says that directive was not followed.
Has the NC or Deputy CM Surinder Choudhary responded to the allegations?
As of Tuesday evening, neither the NC leadership nor Deputy CM Surinder Choudhary had issued a formal public response to the allegations made by MLA Javaid Iqbal Choudhary.
Why does this matter for the Omar Abdullah government?
The public rift is the most visible intra-party challenge to the NC-led J&K government since it took office. Acting against the Deputy CM risks destabilising the ruling coalition's Jammu support base, while inaction could deepen discontent among NC legislators.
