Mehbooba Mufti’s Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was staring at a vertical split and faced an existential crisis as the party's one Rajya Sabha member, one Lok Sabha member, former MLA and two MLAs were on their way to join BJP-backed third front led by Peoples Conference chief Sajad Lone, to gain a political clout ahead of the Assembly polls.
Party sources said the party’s Rajya Sabha member from Kupwara was roped in by the PC emissaries to quit the party and an ex-MLA from Bandipora was approached to take a call within a month to boost the PC’s prospectus in north Kashmir.
A top police officer of the rank of deputy inspector general (DIG), who was seen very close to chief minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed during the 2002 elections and retired in 2016, launched a campaign in the Valley and Jammu to garner support for Lone’s PC.
Party sources said the major shock for the PDP came on Tuesday when PDP member parliament from Baramulla Muzaffar Hussain Baigh, also founder member of the party, publicly supported the third front of Mr. Lone and questioned the party's decision to boycott the recent polls. Baigh’s brother was an MLA from Baramulla and could have switched sides too.
The PDP saw a major split after the fall of the PDP-BJP government in June this year. Four PDP MLAs Imran Ansari, Abid Ansari, Javaid Beigh and Abbas Wani openly rebelled against the party. The PDP expelled MLC Yasir Reshi after he joined Lone in attacking the Mufti family over dynasty monoply.
Ms. Mufti’s move, backed by the National Conference (NC) and Congress, did help the party to keep the flock together and lessen the damage.
Though influential Mr. Ansari, who is also a revered priest among the Shia community, has already declared to contest the next assembly elections on PC ticket from the Valley.
For time being, Ms. Mufti succeeded to stop any major exodus and avoided the vertical split, staring in the face.
“It was not only luring people with promises and posts, but intimidation was also at play. The MLA from Wachi was warned of taking a call to quit the party or chose facing a two-year jail,” a senior PDP leader told The Hindu. The MLA was questioned by the police after his guard decamped with seven service rifles from his residence in Srinagar.
PDP was the J&K's largest party with 29 members in the Assembly. The PC was also in touch with NC leaders. NC vice president and former chief minister Omar Abdullah's spokesman Junaid Azim Mattu has already joined the PC and became the Mayor of Srinagar after the recently concluded elections for urbal local bodies in October.
