SRINAGAR: Hundreds of supporters danced and raised slogans at the historic Lal Chowk on Wednesday as election fever gripped voters in Srinagar. Decades later, the streets of Srinagar witnessed campaigns by mainstream political parties. The electoral battle moved from Anantnag to Srinagar parliamentary constituency, from the historic clock tower to the district election office as supporters raised slogans and danced in support of their candidates.
While the PDP and Apni Party candidates filed their nominations in Srinagar today, the National Conference candidate will file his papers tomorrow. The Srinagar parliamentary constituency is likely to witness a three-way contest between Aaga National Conference candidate Syed Ruhulla Mehdi (a prominent Shia leader), PDP candidate Wahid Para and Apni Party candidate Ashraf Mir.
While Wahid Para and Ashraf Mir filed their nomination papers in Srinagar today, National Conference’s Aaga Ruhulla will file her nomination papers tomorrow. PDP leader Wahid Rehman Para was accompanied by hundreds of his supporters and several senior leaders who showed their strength while filing nominations.
The couple hails from Pulwama, which is now part of Srinagar parliamentary constituency. The pair led a massive roadshow to show their strength. Wahid Para’s rally reached the historic Lal Chowk where hundreds of supporters raised slogans in his support.
Interestingly, the slogans raised by his supporters were completely different from those raised in all previous election campaigns “Omar banoge: Naa bhai Naa, Farooq banoge: Naa bhai Naa – NC banoge: Naa bhai Naa, BJP banoge: Naa bhai Naa, Congress banoge : Naa Bhai Naa, Mufti banoge haan bhai haan
Whid Para told Zee News exclusively that he expects people to come out in huge numbers and vote for PDP to strengthen the hands of Mehbooba Mufti so that he can raise the voice of citizens and youth in Parliament. He said the PDP raises its voice on every issue and is confident of winning the polls.
The second rally was chaired by former minister Altaf Bukhari, who supports the Apni Party. The Apni Party, which was formed after the abrogation of Article 370, has fielded many former ministers and legislators as its candidates in Anantnag and Srinagar, while in Baramulla they are supporting People’s Conference president Sajad Gani Lone.
In Jammu and Kashmir, the prestigious Srinagar parliamentary seat was won in 2019 by National Conference president Farooq Abdullah. This time, Farooq Abdullah has decided not to contest the Lok Sabha polls, citing health reasons.
