Chief minister Omar Abdullah on Saturday criticised lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha’s administration for sacking three government employees for alleged militancy links but found himself under fire from the Opposition for the LG’s actions.

Officials said police constable Firdous Ahmad Bhat, schoolteacher Mohammad Ashraf Bhat and forest department orderly Nisar Ahmad Khan were the men sacked. They were fired under a clause of Article 311 of the Constitution of India that empowers the government to dismiss employees without an inquiry.

The LG’s administration has sacked dozens of government employees since the constitutional downgrading of Jammu and Kashmir in 2019. However, the return of an elected government last October had raised hopes of an end to the practice.

However, the dismissals of the three men were the second instance of sackings since Omar assumed office as chief minister, and underscored who was in actual charge in Jammu and Kashmir.

Omar regretted that the employees were given no opportunity to be heard.

“If there was proof against them and they were given an opportunity to clear themselves and could not, then (it might be all right to sack them),” the chief minister told reporters.

“But if such steps are taken without hearing them, then the law says unless one is proven guilty, he is innocent.”

Omar added: “Everybody gets a right in court to speak for themselves. At least, there should be a hearing. If, after the hearing, they cannot prove themselves, then take whatever action you want.”

Former chief minister and PDP president Mehbooba Mufti assailed Omar’s government for failing to get the LG’s administration to put an end to the sackings.

“Arbitrary & summary dismissals of government employees has become a daily occurrence since 2019. What is perhaps most surprising & puzzling is that it continues unabated despite an elected government in power that had promised to put an end to such practices once in office,” she said on X.

“People had pinned their hopes on the new government expecting at least some relief through vigorous advocacy of these issues with the LG.”

Kashmiri separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq condemned the dismissals.

“The termination of three more state employees in such an authoritarian manner is highly condemnable. Do the rulers want to remove all Kashmiris slowly and steadily from government services and render them jobless?” the Mirwaiz said.

He said the elected representatives had a duty to take the matter up urgently with the authorities concerned, as they had promised in their poll manifesto, and stop the harassment.