Srinagar, Apr 21: Launching a new political party with familiar faces, its programme and massive public outreach have made Syed Mohammad Altaf Bukhari more relevant in the electoral politics of Jammu and Kashmir.
The Apni Party, founded and headed by him, has already fielded its two candidates in two important parliamentary constituencies, Srinagar and Anantnag-Rajouri. For the third constituency, Baramulla, Bukhari has been approached by People’s Conference ( PC) President Sajad Gani Lone to support him there. Lone has already announced to contest from Baramulla.
According to him, the division of votes among various political parties in past had led to the victory of NC candidates mostly. To prevent this division of votes and to defeat NC this time, the PC President is seeking the Apni Party President’s support.
National Conference ( NC) Vice President Omar Abdullah has declared to contest from Baramulla. In past whenever Omar contested parliamentary polls, he would always choose Srinagar.
Omar says that there is nothing wrong in changing the constituencies and in this connection refers to his grandmother, Begum Akbar Jehan, having contested from Anantnag in past and won.
Bukhari recently said that Omar fearing defeat in Srinagar has moved to Baramulla. “He should have stayed in Srinagar even if he would have lost. Victory or defeat are
part and parcel for a politician’s electoral career,” he said.
In Srinagar, the Apni Party is fielding former minister Mohammad Ashraf Mir. Mir as a PDP candidate had defeated Omar Abdullah from Sonwar in the 2014 assembly polls. Omar at that time was contesting from two assembly constituencies and he won from the Beerwah constituency. In the past Beerwah assembly constituency was part of the Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency. But through delimitation, Beerwah has been delinked from Srinagar and linked with Baramulla. ” Technically, I am a north Kashmir contestant since I had won from Beerwah in the last assembly polls,” the NC Vice President said recently while justifying him contesting from Baramulla this time.
Sajad Gani Lone describes Omar as a tourist in the Baramulla electoral fray. When asked about it by the media recently, Bukhari said he will not call the NC leader a tourist since he is also a resident of this city but insisted that he should have contested from Srinagar. However, the Apni Party President described Omar as a “Wali Ahad” (crown prince).
Bukhari in his party has several senior leaders who in past have won assembly polls and some of them were ministers also. Besides contesting the polls from two parliamentary constituencies, the Apni Party’s main focus according to its President is on the coming assembly polls.
Bukhari himself has been very active on the political front since he launched the Apni Party. He has been reaching out to people across Jammu and Kashmir and introducing his party and its programme. “Our’s is the politics based on truth. Unlike the traditional parties we do not promote the politics of dynasties, deception and cheating,” he keeps on saying.
“After the August 5, 2019 decisions when others preferred observing silence, the Apni Party took an initiative to safeguard the rights of our people. We approached the central government and ensured it issued orders for protecting the rights of J&K people on jobs and land,” he said.
The Apni Party President says he supports the central government for peace and development in Jammu and Kashmir. “The central government gave us rights on land and jobs and it will also restore our statehood,” he said. Bukhari views that the union government stands by those parties and leaders in J&K who represent the aspirations of the people.
About the allegations of Omar Abdullah regarding the visit of BJP National General Secretary Tarun Chugh and Sajad Lone to his residence recently, Bukhari says that having personal relations with leaders of various political parties his doors are open for all.
Interestingly, when Omar is criticising them on the visit and meeting, PDP President Mehbooba Mufti has an entirely different view on it. “Democracy is a battle of ideas. Anybody can meet anybody and talk or support. Nothing wrong with that. Finally, it is up to the people to decide whom to vote and whom not to,” she said.
Whatever the election result of the parliamentary seats in Kashmir, the Apni Party intends to go in a big way into the assembly polls and has already geared up for that. In that scenario, Bukhari and his party are going to play a more vital role in electoral politics.