The notice, issued Monday through senior advocate Parimoksh Seth, demands that Abdullah withdraw his statement and issue a public apology within seven days. If he doesn't, Sharma's legal team says it will pursue a criminal defamation case seeking ₹100 crore in damages.

The dispute traces back to July 11, when Abdullah, speaking at a convention in Srinagar, alleged that a senior BJP office-bearer had offered National Conference MLAs between ₹20 and 30 crore in cash, along with a ministerial post and a promise to restore Jammu and Kashmir's statehood, in exchange for defecting. Abdullah went further, claiming the BJP functionary who allegedly made the offer was a lawyer who practices in the Supreme Court of India — a detail widely read as pointing toward Sharma himself, given his legal background.

Advocate Seth, representing Sharma, said the allegations are entirely false and fabricated. He said the BJP had asked the Chief Minister to produce evidence supporting the claims, and that Abdullah's side had failed to do so. The notice argues that the statement, which spread across print, electronic and social media, caused serious damage to the reputation and dignity of both the BJP and Sharma personally.

Speaking about the notice, Seth said the legal team had given Abdullah seven days to apologise and retract his statement, warning that failure to do so would result in a ₹100 crore criminal defamation case. He reiterated that the allegations were baseless and that no evidence had been presented despite the BJP's request.

Neither Abdullah nor the National Conference had issued a public response to the legal notice at the time of publishing. The seven-day deadline set in the notice means any response — or lack of one — is likely to shape the next stage of what has already become one of the more heated political confrontations in Jammu and Kashmir this year.

Speaking at a workers' convention in Hazratbal, Srinagar, on Saturday, Abdullah said the BJP had used a Supreme Court lawyer to approach a Jammu-based National Conference legislator with an offer of ₹20 to 30 crore in cash, alongside a ministerial berth and a promise to restore the state's earlier special status — all in exchange for switching sides. According to PTI, Abdullah said the NC MLA in question rejected the offer outright, and that despite the party's efforts, the BJP wasn't able to break a single one of his legislators.

Abdullah used the moment to issue a pointed warning to the Centre, saying his party's restraint should not be mistaken for weakness — and that staying peaceful didn't mean the NC would stop raising its voice for what it considers its rights. National Conference legislators have echoed the rejection, with the party saying that even an offer of ₹100 crore to every one of its leaders wouldn't be enough to pull them away.

The Chief Minister also used the rally to renew his demand for the restoration of full statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, taking direct aim at the Centre's repeated line that restoration will come at the "right time." He asked what benchmark determines when that time has actually arrived, and questioned whether anything more needs to happen before the region's democratic rights are handed back. He pointed out that people had turned out in large numbers to vote, a new government had been formed, and yet Delhi continued to delay following through on its commitment. He added that if the Centre could hold talks with representatives from Ladakh, it should extend the same courtesy to Jammu and Kashmir to clear up outstanding issues.

Abdullah also aired frustration over what he described as administrative interference, arguing that his elected government hasn't been given the freedom to make and implement its own decisions, with real control instead resting with the Raj Bhavan. He questioned the point of holding large-scale elections in the region if the elected government's authority was always going to be constrained from outside. He said his government would keep working to meet the expectations voters placed in it regardless.

The BJP has not yet issued a public response to Abdullah's allegations. Further reaction from the party, as well as any comment on the identity of the MLA allegedly approached, was awaited at the time of publishing.

The remarks come at a politically charged moment for Jammu and Kashmir, with the statehood question continuing to shape the relationship between the Omar Abdullah-led government and the Centre since the region's return to elected government.