Jammu and Kashmir Assembly Elections: The Turmoil Within the PDP

Since the announcement of the election dates, the PDP has been hit by the resignation of more than a dozen leaders.

Mehbooba Mufti.

(Photo: X/@MehboobaMufti)

Srinagar: With Jammu and Kashmir’s assembly elections just a few days away, the People's Democratic Party (PDP) is reeling from a series of jolts as key leaders are leaving after being denied election tickets.

Ever since the Election Commission of India (ECI) announced the dates, the PDP has been hit by the resignation of more than a dozen leaders including spokesperson Suhail Bukhari, a close associate of party leader Mehbooba Mufti. Bukhari expressed resentment over the party’s decision to support former minister Basharat Bukhari, who recently rejoined the PDP and is likely to contest from the Kreeri-Wagoora seat in Baramulla.

In Shopian’s Wachi, another PDP leader Aijaz Mir resigned after being denied a ticket. His departure was followed by the resignation of two District Development Council (DDC) chairpersons from Shopian. Similarly, Dr Harbaksh Singh, a senior PDP leader and DDC member from Tral in south Kashmir also resigned and joined the 'Engineer' Rashid-led Awami Ittehad Party (AIP).

In Bijbehara, former minister Abdul Rehman Veeri, who has represented the constituency four times since 1999, has been overlooked for the elections. He is now being fielded from the Anantnag seat, while Iltija Mufti, daughter of Mehbooba Mufti, will contest from Bijbehara. The move is intended to support Iltija Mufti's debut political career.

Analysts suggest that the current turmoil stems from various issues, mainly the return of “turncoats” who abandoned the party during challenging periods. The PDP is facing the heat for allegedly neglecting the sacrifices of those who remained loyal during tough times.

Noor Ahmad Baba, a political analyst and former professor of political science at the University of Kashmir, told The Quint that PDP leaders are leaving the party in search of political opportunities, and when denied election tickets, they either run as independents or align with more influential parties.

“In the upcoming elections, the National Conference (NC)-Congress alliance could emerge as a major force, with the NC likely dominating in Kashmir and the Congress gaining significant traction in Jammu, potentially setting the stage for a new government,” Baba predicted.

When questioned about the PDP's absence from the INDIA bloc, PDP’s additional general secretary and former minister Asiea Naqash attributed the issue to the NC's refusal to field Mehbooba Mufti as a candidate in the recent Lok Sabha elections.

“We did not exit the INDIA bloc or the People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD), which was formed to fight for the restoration of the region's special status. Since the NC did not accept our demand, we decided to contest the elections independently.”

Mufti had sought to contest the Anantnag-Rajouri parliamentary seat as an INDIA bloc candidate, but the NC rejected her demand and fielded Mian Altaf, who ultimately won the seat, defeating Mufti and Apni Party’s Zafar Manhas.

NC spokesperson Ifra Jan, however, accused the PDP of exiting the INDIA bloc by fielding its own candidates. “During the recent Lok Sabha elections, the INDIA bloc conducted a survey in J&K and identified the NC and the Congress candidates as potential winners. The PDP did not accept this and chose to field independent candidates. Since they have already withdrawn from the alliance, they are also contesting the upcoming assembly elections separately,” Jan told The Quint.

Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah, both two former chief ministers, had promised not to contest assembly polls without the restoration of statehood (after the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019). However, Abdullah took a U-turn and will contest from Ganderbal, while Mufti has stayed her course.

During the recent Lok Sabha elections, Mufti claimed that her party was the “biggest target” following the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019. “Our leaders were either lured or blackmailed into breaking away from the party. After 2019, the PDP was targeted heavily. Our leaders were coerced into leaving the party.”

Founded by former Union Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed in 1999, the PDP, according to analysts, is still reeling from the fallout of its controversial alliances in 2015 and 2016 with the BJP, and its subsequent justifications of civilian killings and pellet gun violence in the civil unrest following the death of Burhan Wani in 2016. The dissolution of the BJP-PDP alliance in 2018 marked a significant turning point for J&K politics.

Prominent commentator on Jammu and Kashmir politics Zafar Choudhary told The Quint that the PDP has significantly weakened since the 2014 elections.

“The party initially secured votes to prevent the BJP from gaining power in J&K, only to subsequently form a government with the saffron party in 2014-15. PDP founder Mufti Mohammad Sayeed first allied with the BJP, and after his death, Mehbooba Mufti continued the alliance in 2016. Since then, the party’s influence has drastically declined, and it now plays a minimal role in the upcoming assembly elections,” Choudhary explained.

Whenever Mehbooba Mufti posts criticisms of the government on X (formerly Twitter), people in the Valley often recall her infamous remark during the 2016 unrest, when she, as chief minister in the PDP-BJP coalition, said, “Those kids killed in Kashmir had not gone to buy milk and toffee,” losing her composure during a press conference with then Home Minister Rajnath Singh.

Her consecutive losses in the 2019 and 2024 parliamentary elections as former chief minister underscore that the PDP is now at its most vulnerable point in J&K’s political landscape.

The party’s manifesto includes restoring J&K’s special status, engaging in dialogue with Pakistan, and addressing the crisis of Kashmiri Pandits. Amid the crisis, the PDP leaders and workers believe that young and vibrant faces like Waheed Parra and Iltija Mufti can reshape the party yet again and take it to new heights.

Naqash expressed confidence that the party will rejuvenate. “When we established the PDP in 1999, no one expected us to win any seats in J&K, and yet, we formed the government twice. Our leadership has made decisions about the candidates for the assembly elections, and we should respect those decisions.”

As the assembly elections draw near, many leaders are also rejoining or joining the PDP, signalling their intention to contest from various constituencies across the Valley. The party has also gained momentum with the return of three former ministers and legislators—Basharat Bukhari, Abdul Haq Khan, and Syed Bashir.

Earlier this year, senior leader Khurshid Alam rejoined the PDP after resigning in 2021 to join the People’s Conference. Former Rajya Sabha member Fayaz Mir also returned to the party in March and contested the Lok Sabha elections from Baramulla.

Syed Tajamul Bukhari, a local TV journalist, has recently joined the PDP and been appointed as the party's chief spokesman. Aga Syed Muntazir, son of Anjuman-e-Sharie Shiayan President Aga Syed Hassan Al Musavi Safavi has also joined the PDP, a key boost for the party in Budgam.

(Irfan Amin Malik is a journalist based in Kashmir. He tweets @irfanaminmalik. This is an opinion piece and the views expressed above are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for the same.)