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Mufti queers the pitch for NC

Mukhtar Ahmad in Srinagar

With the Mufti Mohammad Syed deserting the Congress things are likely to perk up during the campaign for the parliamentary polls in the state. The formation of a regional party by the Mufti and his daughter indicates that there is space for a local party that could garner Kashmiri support for emotive issues like regional autonomy and unconditional talks with the militants.

The main encouragement for the Mufti and his colleagues appears to have come from the National Conference's alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party. There is a lot of behind-the-scenes activity in the state and many observers believe that the Mufti would not have gone for the big gamble unless he had across-the-board support.

On its part the National Conference, in addition to the main problem of justifying its three years in power, is ridden with internal contradictions. Because of the latter the party has not yet been able to formalise its list of candidates for the forthcoming elections.

There was visible tension when the party's working committee met here last time and tried to reach a consensus on the issue of candidates. Reliable sources inside the party reveal that the state Finance Minister Mohammad Shafi and the Revenue Minister Ali Mohammad Naik have expressed their inability to contest as party candidates from Baramulla and Anantnag constituencies respectively.

A political commentator observed: "Gone are the times when there used to be long queues of aspirants for party tickets outside the National Conference headquarters. Today we are unable to find both the candidates and the officials to supervise such elections." He was referring to the recent decision by the Election Commission to quash the postings of five senior state government officials on grounds of suspect integrity.

The other major jolt for the National Conference has come from the parting of ways by Dr Karan Singh who recently announced his decision to join the Congress. It is interesting to note that Singh's son continues to be a minister in the state and has indicated that his father's parting of ways with the National Conference would not affect his status in either the government or the party.

It is without doubt going to be tough for the National Conference in the Jammu and Ladakh regions where the opposition against it is very strong. In the Valley itself not many people believe that things are the same for it. Not even as good as the last time when 70 percent of the electorate boycotted the polls.

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