Budgam: Coming above religious sectarianism, National Conference (NC)’s rebel Srinagar MP Syed Aga Ruhullah Mehdi announced his resignation from the Lok Sabha and the party on Tuesday (November 3) in a public rally in his hometown Budgam in Jammu and Kashmir.The date coincides with the 26th death anniversary of his father, who was killed in an IED blast in 2000. Ruhullah handed over his resignation letter from the ruling NC to Tufail Mattoo’s father, Mohammad Ashraf Mattoo, and requested him to personally deliver it to party president Farooq Abdullah. It carried symbolic political and emotional weight as Tufail was killed on June 11, 2010 after being hit by a tear-gas shell fired by security forces in Srinagar. The death of the 17-year-old schoolboy had triggered the widespread 2010 summer unrest across Kashmir. Omar was the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir then and Ruhullah was holding the Science & Technology and Animal Husbandry portfolios.“Nov 3, 2026, 2.40 pm, remember the date and time, I am resigning to give freedom to myself,” Ruhullah announced, in a pointed attack towards NC president Abdullah.MP Ruhullah Mehdi addresses a gathering at Behist-e-Zehra Park in Budgam, Jammu and Kashmir on November 3, 2026. Photo: PTI/Burhaan Kinu.Farooq had challenged him to resign from the party, and his Lok Sabha seat and had asked him to consult the Quran and check his path. “Dr Farooq Abdullah should teach the Quran to his ‘Na-Ahal’ (incompetent) [Omar], who, out of fear of the Bharatiya Janata Party [BJP], compromised on Article 370 immediately after winning the 2024 Assembly elections,” Aga said, responding to the party patron a few steps away from the NC’s Budgam office.“All the posturing during elections about restoring Article 370, releasing prisoners, and providing free electricity were just lies. And I cannot continue to be a part of these lies anymore,” he said.Ruhullah signed his resignation letter at the venue and said a copy would be handed over to NC president Farooq.Addressing his supporters at Behishti Zehra Park in Budgam, the firebrand leader, while cutting ties with the NC told supporters that he “could no longer stand by as the NC walked away from its core campaign promises, including the restoration of Article 370, constitutional rights, quota reforms, and the release of political prisoners”. “Those who have secured power by removing caps and placing them at the feet of the people should come here and witness what respect and love means,” he said.The representation on the stage, during Ruhullah’s address, constituted members from different communities – Hindus, Sikhs, Dogras, Shias and Sunnis – reflecting the fact that the aim is to get all the communities under one umbrella.“People who lose chairs get sad, but here we are kicking away a chair, and we are feeling relieved,” Ruhullah said in the opening remarks of his speech.Praising him for his political conduct, Ashraf Mattoo called him a “sincere, honest and dedicated” politician. “I am still fighting for justice. He is our voice. I don’t consider Omar Abdullah and his dynasty as humans. I see a ray of hope in Aga Ruhullah,” Mattoo said while interacting with the media at the venue.A passerby walks past the poster of Syed Aga Ruhullah Mehdi at Behist-e-Zehra Park in Budgam, Jammu and Kashmir on November 3, 2026. Photo: Junaid Dar.Soon after leaving the venue, Ruhullah shared his resignation letter on X. “In exercise of the right conferred by Article 101(3)(b) of the constitution of India, and in terms of Rule 240 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in Lok Sabha, I hereby resign my seat as the Member of Parliament representing the Srinagar parliamentary constituency of Jammu and Kashmir in the eighteenth Lok Sabha, with immediate effect. This resignation is voluntary and genuine, and is tendered of my own free will. I request that it be accepted,” read Ruhullah’s resignation letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla.Honourable Speaker Lok Sabha @ombirlakotaEmail and hard copy will follow. https://t.co/7bG5StrH55— Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi (@RuhullahMehdi) November 3, 2026Ruhullah said that the NC misused him during campaigning. “I pleaded for support for them [NC] during the 2024 elections, and it has turned out to be a big mistake. They might have given up, but I have not. We will launch a movement where honest and compassionate people come forward to lead the struggle for restoring what has been snatched from us,” he added.Also read: What Aga Ruhullah’s Exit from National Conference SignifiesIn his 80-minute speech, Ruhullah hinted at forming a new political outfit in Jammu and Kashmir.He said becoming the chief minister is not his final aim. Further, Ruhullah asserted that he will campaign in every nook and corner of Jammu and Kashmir to mobilise and trace educated, honest youngsters and senior citizens to lead the “movement”. “After ground mobilisation, I will let people decide the name of this moment,” he said.“You [Omar] broke all records of betrayal and disgraced the people of J&K who gave you a massive mandate to rule and restore their dignity in 2024. You acted like a slave to the BJP and the RSS [Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh]. The way we raised you to the throne, we will bring you down – nor for returning in the next elections but for a permanent burial,” Ruhullah said, adding that the Kashmir narrative will be set by people of this land not by Delhi.