Ideological Backtrack

Mehbooba Mufti is yet to respond to the logic behind the PDP’s 2015 alliance with the BJP

- Naseer Ganai

AFTER the death of her father, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, on January 7, 2016, Mehbooba Mufti was reluctant to become chief minister. One of her senior ministers at that time, when asked about the People’s Democratic Party’s (PDP) future course, said: “The PDP is Mehbooba Mufti. She has created this party, and she is the party.” This observation sums up the essence of the PDP.

In 2014, the PDP had the largest number of assembly seats in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), totalling 28. However, a decade later, PDP leaders face criticism from the National Conference (NC), which asserts that the PDP has undergone a regressive transformation since then. At present, the PDP is asking for one seat from the INDIA bloc for Mehbooba to contest in the upcoming polls. However, the NC is refusing this request, citing doubts about the PDP’s ability to secure victory in the Anantnag-Rajouri constituency, once considered a stronghold of the PDP. In the last assembly elections, south Kashmir had largely voted for the PDP.

Since June 19, 2018,—following the BJP’s withdrawal of support to the PDP government—Mehbooba has been actively redefining her party’s identity, meticulously reconstructing it. Having been instrumental in founding the PDP back in 1999, Mehbooba’s leadership has been pivotal in its development.