advertisement
"People have voted en masse for the (Gupkar) alliance,” Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) President Mehbooba Mufti told NDTV, on Wednesday, 23 December, after People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) won the most number of seats in the first major local elections to be held in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), on the other hand, emerged as the single-largest party in the local body elections in the UT.
Further Mufti stated that the DDC polls were like “a referendum on the scrapping of Article 370 and the BJP themselves kept harping on the subject during campaigning.”
“So, the result shows that the people of J&K have rejected that narrative. They have thereby rejected scrapping of Article 370,” she added.
According to NDTV, Mufti also stated that she would not contest any election until the abrogation of Article 370 and the scrapping of the special status to J&K was reversed.
She further said if required, she could even move the International Court of Justice.
On being asked about a potential power struggle with rival National Conference, Mufti said:
The former J&K CM also said: "Whenever Assembly polls are held, we will sit together and discuss (on Chief Ministership). I am not in the race.”
Calling her father Mufti Mohammad Sayeed's decision to partner with the BJP in 2014 a “deal with the devil”, Mufti said:
Mehbooba Mufti alleged that throughout the country, the Constitution was being replaced by the BJP’s agenda.
She also stated that there were many detentions while the polls were underway in the Union Territory and told NDTV that "I myself was detained on four occasions. I was told that I could move out only after voting starts.”
(With inputs from NDTV.)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)
Published: undefined