Jammu and Kashmir's chief minister, Omar Abdullah, refused to cut a tricoloured ribbon representation of the Indian national flag at an inauguration ceremony. He broke from long-standing ceremonial tradition during the opening of a high-profile Handicrafts &amp; Handloom Exhibition on Wednesday (Apr 15). Abdullah requested that the organisers untie the ribbon intact and keep it safe.&nbsp;

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WATCH?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WATCH</a> | Srinagar | Jammu &amp; Kashmir CM Omar Abdullah refuses to cut a tricoloured inaugural ribbon to mark the official opening of the two-day Handicrafts &amp; Handloom Exhibition, instead asks the organisers to remove it and keep it safely <a href="https://t.co/d2o6kYzKH2">pic.twitter.com/d2o6kYzKH2</a>&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/2044327572151120217?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 15, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

&nbsp;This gesture, while visually subtle, carried profound symbolic weight in the politically charged atmosphere of Srinagar. By choosing to preserve the ribbon rather than cutting it, Abdullah effectively transformed a routine administrative act into a statement of high-stakes symbolic diplomacy.

J&K CM Omar Abdullah declines to cut the tricolour ribbon at a Srinagar exhibition, instructing officials to 'keep it safe.' 

Jammu and Kashmir's chief minister, Omar Abdullah, refused to cut a tricoloured ribbon representation of the Indian national flag at an inauguration ceremony. He broke from long-standing ceremonial tradition during the opening of a high-profile Handicrafts & Handloom Exhibition on Wednesday (Apr 15). Abdullah requested that the organisers untie the ribbon intact and keep it safe.

J&amp;K CM Omar Abdullah declines to cut the tricolour ribbon at a Srinagar exhibition, instructing officials to 'keep it safe.'&nbsp;

'Keep it safe': J&K CM Omar Abdullah refuses to cut tricolour ribbon at a ceremony - WATCH

Omar Abdullah, the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, stepped down from his position as the MLA for the Budgam constituency on Monday, opting to keep his Ganderbal seat, a stronghold of the National Conference (NC), after getting elected from both.

Omar Abdullah, the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, stepped down from his position as the MLA for the Budgam constituency on Monday, opting to keep his Ganderbal seat, a stronghold of the National Conference (NC), after getting elected from both. Ganderbal: Abdullah family's bastion Ganderbal has long been associated with the Abdullah family, with NC founder Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah representing the area in 1977 and Farooq Abdullah, the current party president, doing so in 1983, 1987, and 1996. Omar Abdullah, now 54, served as the Ganderbal MLA from 2008 to 2014 during his first term as Jammu and Kashmir's chief minister. Also read: Pannun's 'do not fly' Air India threat resurfaces amid hoax bomb calls In the 2024 Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections, Omar Abdullah secured the Ganderbal seat by defeating Bashir Ahmad Mir of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) with a margin of over 10,000 votes. Abdullah achieved victory in the Budgam constituency also, defeating his closest competitor, Aga Syed Muntazir Mehdi of the PDP, by 18,485 votes. Despite this win, he chose to resign from Budgam, reducing the National Conference's numbers in the 95-member assembly to 41. However, the party still maintains a comfortable majority with the support of six Congress MLAs, five Independents, and one member each from AAP and CPI(M). Also read: India and China reach agreement on patrolling along Line of Actual Control Earlier in the day, pro-tem speaker Mubarak Gul administered the oath to the newly elected assembly members. According to PTI, Omar Abdullah took his oath in Kashmiri, a language he had been criticised for not using often enough. Among the 51 first-time members in the assembly is 29-year-old Shagun Parihar from the BJP, who represents Kishtwar and is the youngest member. On the other hand, NC veteran Abdul Rahim Rather, who represents Chrar-e-Sharief, is the oldest at 80. (With inputs from agencies)

India: J&K CM Omar Abdullah resigns as Budgam MLA, chooses family stronghold Ganderbal

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'Keep it safe': J&K CM Omar Abdullah refuses to cut tricolour ribbon at a ceremony - WATCH

India: J&K CM Omar Abdullah resigns as Budgam MLA, chooses family stronghold Ganderbal