BJP names 16 candidates for first phase of Jammu and Kashmir Assembly polls

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday named 16 candidates for the first phase of polling in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), including Shagun Parihar, who had lost her father and uncle in a terrorist attack five years ago.

Resentment within the party ranks in its state unit and confusion marred the release of BJP’s list.

The BJP initially announced its 44 candidates for the three phases. It later withdrew that list as party workers protested the candidates it had named for the second and third phases.

BJP’s J&K unit chief Ravinder Raina downplayed the anger over the initial list.

However, a group of party workers protested at its headquarters in Jammu and claimed “parachute candidates” were picked over committed hardworking workers.

 

The list of 16 candidates for the first phase includes three former legislators and 29-year-old Shagun, the only woman candidate in the list.

Her father Ajeet Parihar and uncle Anil Parihar, who were BJP leaders, were killed by terrorists in Kishtwar district in November 2018.

Shagun, who is pursuing her PhD in electronics, said unemployment is a major issue in the region.

The initial list covered 36 segments in the Jammu region and eight in the Kashmir Valley. It included nearly a dozen prominent leaders, including several former ministers, who joined the party in the last five years.

Ten former MLAs, including ex-deputy chief minister Nirmal Singh and ex-J&K BJP chief Sat Paul Sharma, have been dropped.

Sharing the revised list of candidates, the BJP said the names for the second and third phases should be considered withdrawn.

BJP Scheduled Caste (SC) Morcha president Jagdish Bhagat welcomed withdrawal of the initial list. “If they ignore us, there will be serious consequences. We will not allow any wrongdoing and will protest against this injustice within the party,” Bhagat told PTI.

The first phase will see voting in 24 Assembly segments — 16 in Kashmir and eight in Jammu — on September 18.

The BJP's Central Election Committee had met on Sunday evening to finalise candidates for the polls.

The second and third phases of polls will be held on September 25 and October 1. Counting will be taken up on October 4.

In the last Assembly elections held in Jammu and Kashmir in 2014, the BJP had won 25 seats.

In the Jammu region's Chenab Valley, the BJP has fielded former ministers Sunil Sharma (Padder-Nagseni constituency) and Shakti Raj Parihar (Doda-West), former MLA Daleep Singh Parihar (Bhaderwah), Shagun Parihar (Kishtwar), Tariq Keen (Inderwal), Gajay Singh Rana (Doda), Rakesh Thakur (Ramban) and Salim Bhat (Banihal). 

The BJP's Neelam Kumar Langeh had won the Ramban constituency in the 2014 elections but was dropped this time.

In the Kashmir Valley, the BJP has fielded its vice-president Sofi Yousu (Srigufwara-Bijbehara), Syed Showkat Gayoor Andrabi (Pampore), Arshid Bhat (Rajpora), Javed Ahmad Qadri (Shopian), Mohd Rafiq Wani (Anantnag West), Syed Wazahat (Anantnag), Veer Saraf (Shangus-Anantnag East) and Choudhary Roshan Hussain Gujjar (Kokernag-ST).

In another development, National Conference (NC) vice-president Omar Abdullah on Monday asked a visiting delegation of US diplomats for a re-look at travel advisories for J&K and to ease restrictions over visiting the union territory.

“He also invited the diplomats to visit Kashmir with their families as a first step to inspire confidence among tourists from the United States and other parts of the world,” the NC said.

Several countries have travel advisories in place, asking their citizens to not visit J&K. In its latest travel advisory issued in July this year, the US government asked its citizens to exercise increased caution in India due to crime and terrorism.

Centre carves out new districts in Ladakh

The Centre on Monday announced that five new districts, namely Zanskar, Drass, Sham, Nubra and Changthang, are being carved out in Ladakh.

“The new districts will take the benefits meant for the people to their doorsteps by bolstering governance in every nook and cranny,” Union Home Minister Amit Shah said. 

The Congress asked whether there will be elected Autonomous Hill Development Councils for each of the five new districts, just as there are for Leh and Kargil.