Modi’s One-Time Ally in Kashmir Wants to Block BJP From Control
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A former ally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the volatile region of Jammu and Kashmir is now open to working with rivals to block his party from forming a local government after elections that kick off next week.
The People’s Democratic Party governed Jammu and Kashmir in alliance with Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party from 2015 until 2018, when the coalition collapsed. The next year, Modi stripped the Muslim-majority region of its semi-autonomy and downgraded its status from a state to a union territory, bringing it under federal control.
Locals will now go to the polls for the first time since those changes, with a three-phase election that starts on Sept. 18 and ends on Oct. 1. Counting will take place on Oct. 8.
The PDP is open to working with rivals to prevent the BJP from taking control in the region, Iltija Mufti, daughter of PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti, said in an interview in Srinagar on Thursday.
“We realize that if we talk about the aspirations of people separately, it’ll not carry as much weight as it will if we all come on the same platform,” she said. But “nothing with the BJP,” she added.
Kashmir, the Muslim-majority part of the region, has faced decades of separatist violence, with frequent clashes between militants and India’s military. The territory is claimed in full by both Pakistan and India, but divided and controlled by both countries.
After scrapping Article 370 of India’s constitution that gave the region special status, Modi’s government cut internet access, imprisoned leaders for months and curtailed political activity to prevent protests.
The PDP’s main rival in the elections is the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference, led by Omar Abdullah. Both the PDP and Abdullah’s party are promising to restore statehood, boost economic development and to protect cultural and regional identity by restoring the safeguards scrapped by Modi in 2019.
The 37-year-old Ilitija Mufti is making her political debut in the elections and is widely expected to take over the mantle of the party from her mother at some point. She emerged as the face of the party in 2019 when her mother was detained with other senior leaders in the province.
The PDP has nominated more than 50 candidates so far for the 90 seats of the assembly. The BJP has fielded 62 candidates.
“No single party is going to get majority in the end, the result is going to be fractured,” Mufti said. “PDP will definitely emerge as a king maker.”
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