Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Oct 20: A day before Election Commission of India hinted that elections in Jammu and Kashmir will be held as per schedule, little known political figures have started floating political parties to contest the Assembly elections.
Since June this year, six political parties have been floated in the Valley. These political outfits are believed to be the proxy players to cut vote share of larger parties, National Conference and People’s Democratic Party, and increase voters’ participation in the elections.
Today, a new political party ‘Jammu and Kashmir Tehreek-I-Haq’ (Movement for Justice and Prosperity) was launched in a local hotel here, with Dr Mohammad Ashraf Bhat its president, Engineer Masood Hussain its vice-president and Shahzad Asim its general secretary.
During its launch, Bhat said his party was an “alternative” to other political parties that have ruled the state since last 50 years.
Four little know parties-J&K United Peoples Party, Save South Kashmir, Awami Tehreek-Insaf and Peoples United Party- have merged together to form the Tehreek-I-Haq.
“Congress, BJP, NC and PDP are responsible for increasing miseries of the Kashmiris. If Muslim United Front and Jameet-e-Islami would have been given an opportunity in 1987 to form the Government, the situation would have been different today. Our party is an alternative to the opportunistic parties,” Bhat said.
He said advocating poll-boycott was “illegal” and people should be allowed to exercise their franchise and to form the democratic elected Government.
The new party ruled out their support to BJP or any other political party. “We neither have ties with any political party nor have we decided over it yet. At present we are trying to engage and involve with us, he added.”
He said that their candidates will contest on 50 to 60 seats in the State in the coming Assembly elections.
Last year, several political parties were launched to go in the election fray. In June this year, Rabbia Bajji, who forfeited deposit in the Parliamentary polls from Srinagar-Budgam Lok Sabha seat floated ‘Awami Ittehad Front’.
A month later, in August, Advocate Fayaz Ahmad Bhat floated ‘Jammu and Kashmir People’s United Front’.
In the same month, another political party was floated by Bashir Ahmad Kashmiri and named it ‘Liberal Democratic Party’. On August 23, Bashir Ahmad Malik, a panchayat member, and Amin Andrabi jointly launched ‘Peoples Republican Party’ (PRP).
Advocate Syed Reyaz Khawar also launched another political party from his native village, Gulshanabad, in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district in the August and named it ‘Jammu Kashmir Awami Tehreek’.
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