The Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, 79, has put an end to all speculation and confirmed that his daughter Mehbooba Mufti, 56, deserves to replace him to become the first-ever woman chief minister of the state.
"She works in the field," Sayeed told reporters in Jammu last Friday. "I only make speeches and sit in the office".
Mehbooba Mufti is the president of People’s Democratic Party, which has been running a coalition government with the Bhartiya Janta Party since March last year, with Sayeed as chief minister. It has been a partnership of disagreements and conflicts and Sayeed's plans have led to hard negotiations with the BJP and will have to be approved by the party's top brass.
“She deserves it”
Mehbooba Mufti, a law graduate from Kashmir University, has been in active politics since 1996 Assembly elections when she won as a Congress candidate from South Kashmir’s Bijbehara.
In 1999, her father decided to quit the Congress and form his own party, of which she then became the vice president. Currently, a member of Parliament, she was visibly active in opposition during the National Conference-Congress regime in Jammu and Kashmir, seen as a vocal and prominent critic of government policies.
But now that the tables have turned, and her party is in coalition with the BJP, a party seen to be hostile by the state's Muslim population, she clearly has her task cut out.
Sayeed, however, feels optimistic, praising his daughter’s work in keeping the party and the government running successfully. Sayeed said that since forming the government, he has been focused only on development and doesn’t get time to interact with his party workers.
Opposition to the BJP remains within the PDP and not all are reconciled to the necessity of forming an alliance with it. Mehbooba, however, has been consistent in articulating a positive outlook. "The purpose of this alliance," she told party workers on Saturday, "is to catalyse reconciliation and confidence building within and across the Line of Control to create an enabling environment for sustainable peace, all round economic development and prosperity of the state.”
Fissures in the party
But not all senior party workers are convinced. The fissures in the party are therefore likely to deepen further once she takes over as chief minister.
Two senior PDP leaders and members of Parliament, Muzaffar Hussain Baig and Tariq Hameed Karra have been vehemently opposed to the alliance, urging Sayeed to reconsider the coalition with the BJP. Sayeed has been dismissive of their dissent. “I’m not responsible for their personal comments," he told reporters in Jammu. "As far as Mehbooba’s anointment is concerned, it won’t be because of me, but the collective party decision.”
One of the founding members of the PDP, Baig remains sceptical whether the PDP-BJP alliance would complete its full term. On October 21, both Baig and Karra distanced themselves from Mehbooba by skipping a meeting of party office-bearers she had called at the chief minister’s residence.
Not a done deal
While the path may have been cleared for Mehbooba, and her elevation may only be a matter of time, but it is not a done deal yet. Avinash Rai Khanna, BJP’s national vice president and the party's chief whip in Rajya Sabha, denied any such proposal on record. "There is no truth in the rumours that change of guard in Jammu and Kashmir is on the cards," he told a local news agency. "The coalition government is running smoothly. No such meeting or communication has taken place between Mufti and the BJP high command. People should not believe any such rumours."
The opposition National Conference said the transition is an admission of Sayeed’s failure and proves their contention that "PDP’s sell-out to the BJP and RSS was done for Mehbooba’s political future.”
“The dignity, sentiments and aspirations of the people were bartered for her long-cherished dream of ascending to the Chief Minister’s chair,” the chief spokesperson of the National Conference said. “Mufti Sahab is very keen in getting the requisite permission from the RSS...While most PDP leaders including members of Parliament are now openly rebelling against their party leadership, Mufti Sahab is singularly focused on foisting his daughter on the chief minister’s chair.”
We welcome your comments at
letters@scroll.in.
"She works in the field," Sayeed told reporters in Jammu last Friday. "I only make speeches and sit in the office".
Mehbooba Mufti is the president of People’s Democratic Party, which has been running a coalition government with the Bhartiya Janta Party since March last year, with Sayeed as chief minister. It has been a partnership of disagreements and conflicts and Sayeed's plans have led to hard negotiations with the BJP and will have to be approved by the party's top brass.
“She deserves it”
Mehbooba Mufti, a law graduate from Kashmir University, has been in active politics since 1996 Assembly elections when she won as a Congress candidate from South Kashmir’s Bijbehara.
In 1999, her father decided to quit the Congress and form his own party, of which she then became the vice president. Currently, a member of Parliament, she was visibly active in opposition during the National Conference-Congress regime in Jammu and Kashmir, seen as a vocal and prominent critic of government policies.
But now that the tables have turned, and her party is in coalition with the BJP, a party seen to be hostile by the state's Muslim population, she clearly has her task cut out.
Sayeed, however, feels optimistic, praising his daughter’s work in keeping the party and the government running successfully. Sayeed said that since forming the government, he has been focused only on development and doesn’t get time to interact with his party workers.
Opposition to the BJP remains within the PDP and not all are reconciled to the necessity of forming an alliance with it. Mehbooba, however, has been consistent in articulating a positive outlook. "The purpose of this alliance," she told party workers on Saturday, "is to catalyse reconciliation and confidence building within and across the Line of Control to create an enabling environment for sustainable peace, all round economic development and prosperity of the state.”
Fissures in the party
But not all senior party workers are convinced. The fissures in the party are therefore likely to deepen further once she takes over as chief minister.
Two senior PDP leaders and members of Parliament, Muzaffar Hussain Baig and Tariq Hameed Karra have been vehemently opposed to the alliance, urging Sayeed to reconsider the coalition with the BJP. Sayeed has been dismissive of their dissent. “I’m not responsible for their personal comments," he told reporters in Jammu. "As far as Mehbooba’s anointment is concerned, it won’t be because of me, but the collective party decision.”
One of the founding members of the PDP, Baig remains sceptical whether the PDP-BJP alliance would complete its full term. On October 21, both Baig and Karra distanced themselves from Mehbooba by skipping a meeting of party office-bearers she had called at the chief minister’s residence.
Not a done deal
While the path may have been cleared for Mehbooba, and her elevation may only be a matter of time, but it is not a done deal yet. Avinash Rai Khanna, BJP’s national vice president and the party's chief whip in Rajya Sabha, denied any such proposal on record. "There is no truth in the rumours that change of guard in Jammu and Kashmir is on the cards," he told a local news agency. "The coalition government is running smoothly. No such meeting or communication has taken place between Mufti and the BJP high command. People should not believe any such rumours."
The opposition National Conference said the transition is an admission of Sayeed’s failure and proves their contention that "PDP’s sell-out to the BJP and RSS was done for Mehbooba’s political future.”
“The dignity, sentiments and aspirations of the people were bartered for her long-cherished dream of ascending to the Chief Minister’s chair,” the chief spokesperson of the National Conference said. “Mufti Sahab is very keen in getting the requisite permission from the RSS...While most PDP leaders including members of Parliament are now openly rebelling against their party leadership, Mufti Sahab is singularly focused on foisting his daughter on the chief minister’s chair.”
