Pulwama, Sep 02 (KNO): As the assembly elections approach in south Kashmir, at least nine District Development Council (DDC) members are contesting from various seats, promising to provide tough competition to other candidates.
According to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), the DDC members entering the race include Waheed ur Rehman Para, Ab Qayoom Mir, and Dr Harbaksh Singh in Pulwama district; Aijaz Ahmad Mir and Raja Waheed in Shopian district; Gulzar Ahmad Dar and Afroza Begum in Kulgam district; and Bilal Ahmad Deva and Adv Saleem Parry in Anantnag district.
Pulwama
Waheed ur Rehman Para, a DDC member who was previously prevented from taking the oath due to alleged terror links, is running against former minister and three-time PDP MLA Mohammad Khalil Bandh.
Pulwama is notable for being the only district in Jammu and Kashmir where the DDC Chairperson was initially from the PDP, although many members have since switched allegiances. Out of the seven original PDP members, five have left the party.
Currently, Waheed ur Rehman Para and Tazeem from Pampore remain with the PDP, while others like Manzoor and Meema have joined the Apni Party, and Dr Harbaksh and Qayoom Mir have joined the Awami Ittihad Party (AIP). Dr Bari Andrabi, the former DDC Chairperson, has also left the PDP and is expected to support the NC in the Pulwama constituency.
Shopian
In Shopian, the PDP originally had three DDC members: Aijaz Ahmad Mir, Raja Waheed and Muzzafar Ahmad Wagay. Over time, additional members, including DDC Chairperson Bilquees Bano and Ab Rashid Lone Mantribugh, also joined the PDP. However, most of them have now left, except for Muzzafar Ahmad Wagay, who is also anticipated to leave soon.
Aijaz Mir and Raja Waheed have resigned from the PDP after being denied tickets and are now running in the Zainapora and Shopian constituencies, respectively. Bilquees Bano and Ab Rashid Lone have decided to support former MLA Aijaz Mir, who is expected to be a formidable competitor against NC and PDP candidates in Zainapora. Raja Waheed, running as an AIP candidate, is also expected to garner significant support in Shopian.
Kulgam
In Kulgam, Gulzar Ahmad Dar, a DDC member from DK Marg, is contesting for the PDP in DH Pora, where the party lacks other prominent candidates. Afroza Begum, another DDC member from Behibagh, Kulgam, is running as an independent candidate for the Kulgam assembly seat.
Anantnag
Bilal Ahmad Deva, the DDC member from Vessu Qazigund, is contesting the Anantnag West seat on a Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) ticket, where he faces competition from NC’s An Majeed Bhat Larmi and PDP’s Ab Gaffar Sofi. Adv Saleem Parry, another DDC member, is also a candidate for DPAP in the Dooru Assembly constituency. He is set to compete against the NC-Congress alliance candidate G A Mir and PDP's Mohammad Ashraf Malik—(KNO)