Prime Minister Narendra Modi and lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha looked uneasy on the stage.

Chief minister Omar Abdullah had just taken an open dig at the Centre, underlining how its policies had “demoted” him while Sinha had been “promoted” since the last time the trio had been together at the same venue 11 years ago.

The occasion was Modi’s inauguration of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla railway line — which connects Kashmir with the rest of the country — at Katra station in Jammu on Friday.

Modi had inaugurated the Katra station in 2014, soon after becoming Prime Minister, and Omar and Sinha were present at that event too.

But Omar, then chief minister of undivided Jammu and Kashmir state, is now the elected head of a Union Territory with truncated powers while Sinha, a junior railway minister in 2014, now holds sweeping powers as LG.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurates the Anji bridge in Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir on Friday. PMO via PTI

“Soon after (the 2014) elections, you (Modi) came here to open the Katra railway station. After that you won elections thrice (twice) and continued to be the Prime Minister,” Omar said.

“...Manoj Sinhaji was MoS, railways, when Katra railway station was opened and I was here as chief minister. If you look at Manoj Sinhaji, with Mata’s (Vaishno Devi’s) grace, he was promoted. If you look at me, I was demoted. I was the state’s chief minister but now I am a UT’s chief minister,” he added.

“But I hope that it will not take much time to make a correction. (From) your (Modi’s) hands, Jammu and Kashmir will get its statehood status back.”

Omar also acknowledged the presence of a fourth dignitary at both the 2014 and 2025 events: Jitendra Singh, junior minister at the Prime Minister’s Office, who has been MP from Udhampur in Jammu since 2014.

The chief minister followed up his jibe with praise for Modi, telling him he had inaugurated a project that even the British Raj could not achieve.

He lauded former BJP Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who had in 2002 declared the project as one of national importance, following which it gained pace. Omar, however, did not mention former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who too had played a key role towards the project’s completion.

Omar said the rail link would help the region’s economy, boosting industries such as tourism and horticulture. It would also free Kashmir from the exploitation of the airlines, who hike their fares every time a national highway closes because of rain or snow, he said.

“When a highway closes because of rain, airlines start looting us. A ₹5,000 ticket would sell for ₹20,000 in hours. That loot will lessen,” Omar said.

The Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry too welcomed the inauguration of the direct Srinagar-Katra rail link, saying it would provide the much-needed safe, reliable and all-weather connectivity.

It hoped that the next step would be direct train services from Srinagar to Jammu and Delhi without halts.

Many here are unhappy that passengers would need to switch trains at Katra for their onward journey to Jammu and beyond.

The chamber advocated the launch of freight trains to unlock Kashmir’s economic potential.

“Efficient freight services will help reduce post-harvest losses, boost artisans’ incomes, and improve profit margins for small and medium enterprises,” it said.

“The import of essential raw materials will also become easier, contributing to better supply chain management and reduced production delays.”