Sheikh Abdullah

For other people named Sheikh Abdullah, see Sheikh Abdullah (disambiguation).

"Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah" redirects here. For the Bangladeshi Minister of Religious Affairs, see Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah (Bangladeshi politician). For the member of Parliament from Mushiganj-1, see Sheikh Md. Abdullah.

Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah
Abdullah on a 1988 stamp of India
2nd Prime Minister of Jammu and Kashmir
In office 5 March 1948 – 9 August 1953
Preceded by	Mehr Chand Mahajan
Succeeded by	Bakshi Ghulam Mohammad
3rd and 4th Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir
In office 25 February 1975 – 26 March 1977
Governor	Lakshmi Kant Jha
Preceded by	Syed Mir Qasim
Succeeded by	Governor's rule
In office 9 July 1977 – 8 September 1982
Governor	Lakshmi Kant Jha (until 1981) Braj Kumar Nehru (from 1981)
Preceded by	Governor's rule
Succeeded by	Farooq Abdullah
President of Jammu & Kashmir National Conference
In office October 1932 – August 1981
Preceded by	Office established
Succeeded by	Farooq Abdullah
Member of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly
In office 1977–1982
Preceded by	Muhammad Maqbool Bhat
Succeeded by	Farooq Abdullah
Constituency	Ganderbal
Personal details
Born	(1905-12-05)5 December 1905 Soura, Jammu and Kashmir, British India
Died	8 September 1982(1982-09-08) (aged 76) Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India
Party	Jammu & Kashmir National Conference
Spouse	Begum Akbar Jehan Abdullah
Children	Farooq Suraiya Mustafa Khalida
Education	Islamia College Lahore Aligarh Muslim University
Occupation	Politician

Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah (5 December 1905 – 8 September 1982) was an Indian politician who played a central role in the politics of Jammu and Kashmir. Abdullah was the founding leader and President of the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference (later renamed Jammu and Kashmir National Conference). He agitated against the rule of the Maharaja Hari Singh and urged self-rule for Kashmir. He is also known as Sher-e-Kashmir ("Lion of Kashmir") and Father of the State of Jammu & Kashmir ("Baba-e-Qaum").

He served as the first elected Prime Minister of the Princely State of Jammu and Kashmir and Jammu & Kashmir as a State and was later jailed by Indian government citing his support to insurgents. He was dismissed from the position of Prime Minister on 8 August 1953 and Bakshi Ghulam Mohammad was appointed the new prime minister. The expressions 'Sadr-i-Riyasat' and 'Prime Minister' were replaced with the terms 'Governor' and 'Chief Minister' in 1965. Sheikh Abdullah again became the Chief Minister of the state following the accord with Indira in 1974 and remained in the top slot till his death on 8 September 1982. His grandson Omar Abdullah is currently the chief minister of Jammu & Kashmir.