Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah on Monday extolled a Lok Sabha member from the National Conference and rebuffed another in a delicate balancing act aimed at checking the growing dissent within his party.

Responding to the criticism of his government by senior parliamentarian Mian Altaf Ahmad Larvi and Srinagar MP Aga Ruhullah Mehdi, Omar said there was a “vast difference” between the two and asked reporters not to put them “on the same platform”.

Omar and Mehdi’s relations have frayed after the Srinagar MP accused the chief minister of diverging from key issues such as the restoration of Article 370 and cosying up to the BJP.

Anantnag MP Larvi on Sunday joined Mehdi in criticising Omar, saying he was not on the right path.

“It will be wrong if I say Omar Sahab is on the right track. That would be deceiving him. He must see what rights and limits he has and how he can better serve the people who elected him,” he said.

Talking to reporters in Srinagar, Omar on Monday lavished praise on the “father-like” Larvi but refused to discuss Mehdi.

Omar said he treated Larvi with deep respect and valued his advice.

“You are bringing which people on the same platform? They are worlds apart,” the chief minister said. “I respect Mian Altaf Sahab a lot. He is a senior leader of the NC. I spoke to him over the phone after reading his statement. He said he had no intention of criticising me.”

Omar said Larvi told him to be mindful of his words while sitting on the chief minister’s chair. “My father always tells me to think before I speak. So did Mian Altaf Sahab. In that sense, there is no difference between my father and Mian Sahib,” Omar said.

Omar said he requested that Larvi talk directly to him if he had any complaints. “I told him, whenever anyone wants to talk to me, leave the media aside and come to me directly. We can talk behind closed doors,” he said.

Omar, however, refused to comment on Mehdi.

Larvi did not react to Omar’s claim on Monday, but Mehdi said there were issues in Kashmir that were bigger than somebody’s “ego”.

“Kashmir is facing an existential crisis…. Thousands of our youth are in jails. Does he (Omar) know their address? What did he do for them?” Mehdi asked.

The Srinagar MP said the NC came to power by promising to fight for the restoration of Article 370, but Omar busied himself with presenting shawls and bouquets to BJP leaders.

“If someone wants to make it an ego issue, I will fight on that level, too. But my identity is not important, the issues are,” he said.