NEW DELHI: Former J&K CM and People’s Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti on Tuesday said her party shall fight assembly polls in the UT, as and when they are held, so as not to cede any space to BJP. However, she added that she would not contest polls individually unless Article 370 and Article 35A are restored and J&K returns to its pre-August 5, 2019 status.
Participating in a media interaction organised by the Indian Women’s Press Corps (IWPC) here, Mehbooba said even as constituents of the People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) remain united in their demand for restoration of Article 370, the latest political outreach by Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad in Jammu could divide the opposition votes in J&K and benefit BJP.
The PDP chief also dismissed the ongoing delimitation exercise in J&K as part of BJP’s larger agenda. “They want to carve out constituencies to suit their political interests. The very fact that they singled J&K out for delimitation reveals there is an agenda at work. Otherwise why could they not have waited till 2026 to undertake the exercise?” she asked.
PDP has so far refused to be part of the delimitation commission’s meetings.
