The BJP may not be contesting any of the three Lok Sabha seats in Kashmir but the party is confident that the elections in the Valley will end the domination of the National Conference and People’s Democratic Party in the region.
A day before Srinagar goes to the polls, BJP national general secretary Tarun Chugh claimed on Monday that the Narendra Modi government’s development initiatives following the abrogation of Article 370 coupled with peace in the region have ensured that people are looking beyond family-run parties like the two regional outfits besides the Congress.
“These parties are responsible for all the turmoil Jammu and Kashmir went through right from the 90s when terrorism erupted and lakhs of Kashmiri Pandits had to flee their homes.
“People know that be it the PDP, NC or the Congress, their concerns are not the priority of these parties as they only want to perpetuate their family rule,” said Chugh, who is overseeing his party’s campaign in the region besides in Ladakh and Telangana.
The Congress had jailed NC founder Sheikh Abdullah for over two decades but his son and grandson, Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah, have joined hands with the same party, he said, adding that this underlines their “hunger for power and desperation”.
Asked why the BJP is not contesting any of the three seats in the Valley, he said the party has been able to strike a chord with people with the works of the Centre and has exposed the entrenched political parties.
Sources said the BJP believes that its best hopes lie in a good performance by former minister Altaf Bukhari-led JK Apni Party and Sajad Lone’s JK People’s Conference as the demographics of the Muslim-majority Valley are not very suited to the party.
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