SRINAGAR: National Conference on Thursday criticised the Centre’s decision to appoint BJP leader and former J&K deputy CM Kavinder Gupta as Ladakh’s lieutenant governor.Tanvir Sadiq, spokesperson of NC, said the move contradicted BJP’s claim while abrogating Article 370 and bifurcating J&K on Aug 5, 2019. “BJP had claimed that the people of Leh and Kargil wanted to govern themselves and didn’t want to be ruled from J&K. It was your justification for separating Ladakh and turning it into a separate UT,” Sadiq said, adding, “Now you have appointed someone from Jammu as the LG of Ladakh. If this isn’t injustice to the people of Ladakh, what is it?”The NC spokesperson said the appointment exposed BJP’s real motives. “This is less about empowering Ladakh and more about accommodating one of your own. You promised autonomy to Ladakh but ended up sending people from J&K,” he said.On Sunday, President Droupadi Murmu appointed Gupta the LG, a move welcomed by BJP. In Jammu, the party felicitated Gupta. BJP state president Sat Sharma said it was in recognition of Gupta’s lifelong commitment to the party and the nation.