Anantnag-Rajouri, the BJP’s guessing game
By refusing to declare its candidate for the crucial Anantnag-Rajouri Lok Sabha constituency in Jammu and Kashmir, the BJP is keeping everyone in the dark.
Due to inadequate road connections, the Apni Party, led by prominent businessman Altaf Bukhari, has written to the Chief Electoral Officer of J&K requesting that the parliamentary seat votes be postponed.
The Kashmir and Jammu area is included by the recently created Anantnag-Rajouri constituency. On May 7, votes in the seat are due.
There is conjecture that J&K BJP president Ravindra Raina, who represents five districts in the Kashmir and Jammu areas, might be the BJP’s nominee for the seat.
About 11 lakh of the 19,25,450 voters in the Anantnag-Rajouri LS constituency are located in South Kashmir (Anantnag and Kulgam), while over 8 lakh electors are located in the twin border districts of Rajouri and Poonch in Jammu state.
In addition to Raina, the BJP was also thinking of nominating an IAS official who is now serving from the Anantnag seat. They said, “Yet it is now highly unlikely that the IAS officer would be asked to enter politics and run for the LS seat.” According to sources, the BJP would evaluate the current circumstances before deciding on its nominee.
Leaders of the PDP and former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti, the DPAP and another former chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, Gujjar leader of NC Mian Altaf Ahmed, and Zafar Iqbal Manhas of the Apni Party will contest from the seat.
The Gujjars, Bakerwals, and Paharis are among the many tribal people that inhabit the Poonch and Rajouri districts of the seat. ST reserve for the Paharis and three other villages was just announced by the Center. Leaders in Pahari have responded by promising the BJP the support of their community.
The BJP is hoping to gain from giving political reservation to STs, which includes the Paharis and three other groups on the ST list, and is targeting the Anantnag seat in order to gain ground in the mostly Muslim Valley.
After the closure of Mughal Road, which connects Kashmir with the border districts of Poonch and Rajouri, the J&K Apni Party has written to the Chief Electoral Officer of Uttar Pradesh, requesting a postponement of the local elections in the Anantnag-Rajouri seat, since the BJP has been delaying nomination.
It would be tough for political workers and party leaders to commute since Mughal Road is often closed. The nomination documents must be turned up at Anantnag. Employees of Rajouri-Poonch would find it very difficult to go to Anantnag in such a scenario. The letter states, “Candidates will not be able to reach the people for campaigning due to poor road connectivity.”
Recently, at the latter’s home in Srinagar, Peoples Conference chairwoman Sajjad Lone and Apni Party president Altaf Bukhari met with Tarun Chugh, the BJP’s Kashmir in-charge. The Apni Party has nominated Ashraf Mir for Srinagar and Zaffar Manhas for Anantnag-Rajouri, while Lone has declared his candidacy for the Baramulla seat.
The BJP has not yet said whether it would run for office in Kashmir or back another candidate.
According to BJP state spokesman Altaf Thakur, the party would shortly declare its nominees for the seats in Srinagar and Anantnag. But he would not provide any likely candidates.
