"If People Accept Me, Fine": Mehbooba Mufti's Daughter On Poll Debut

The Bijbehara constituency of Anantnag has been a bastion of Mufti family since 1990s. The Peoples Democratic Party - formed by Mehbooba Mufti's father and former Chief Minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed -- has been winning from this seat since 1996. This time, the third generation of the Mufti family - Mufti's grand-daughter Iltija Mufti - is making her electoral debut from this constituency after her mother, Mehbooba Mufti declined to contest the election. 

Mehbooba Mufti has said that she would not contest as long as J&K remains a Union Territory and its special status is not restored.

The contest on September 18 will be three-cornered, but the main fight is expected to be between Iltija Mufti and National Conference's Dr Bashir Veeri. The third candidate is BJPs Sufi Yousf. The number of candidates here is the lowest of any constituency in Kashmir. No Independent is in fray, even though 44 per cent of candidates contesting in the first and second phase of elections are Independents.

Iltija Mufti appears both confident and cautious about her election prospects as she flits between villages nestled amid apple orchards and gushing streams. The 37-year-old is trying to connect with people to carry forward the legacy of her grandfather.

Propaganda against dynastic politics doesn't bother her, she said, because it is she who will be accepted or rejected by people during the election. "If the people accept me, fine. If they don't, not a big deal," she told reporters.  

But there was a subtle hint of what she thought of the contest: "I'm not complacent about elections... even if it is easy I don't take it easy".

Ms Mufti's main rival is Dr Bashir Ahmad Veeri, the National Conference candidate. A former legislator, Dr Veeri talks about local and livelihood issues along with his party's larger political narrative. The scrapping of Article 370 and how it has impacted the people and their identity is central to the campaign of Omar Abdullah's National Conference.

Iltija mufti's candidates doesn't make any difference to him, he said. 
"In 2014, there was a PDP wave, because they had set a narrative that if you want to stop the BJP, vote for PDP... this time it's very favourable scenario for us," he said. 

The PDP's subsequent alliance with the BJP to form government in the erstwhile state had collapsed in 2018 as the BJP ended ties. A year later, the BJP scrapped the special status of Jammu and Kashmir granted under the Constitution's Article 370 and split the state into two Union Territories. This year's election will be the first after a decade. 

The candidate from the BJP, which claims credit for helping Jammu and Kashmir turn over a new leaf - a positive one where the diktat of terrorists does not matter -- said the people are quietly supporting him. 

Sofi Yousf said the people are supporting him as they are happy with the BJP for bringing peace in the Valley. The biggest mark of that change, he said, is that Jamaat-e-Islami has joined mainstream.

"Our regional party leaders have nothing to offer to people. They are only spreading lies," he said. "My promise to people is development... these people have known me for last 25 years. I have been helping them... I promise the people Bijbehara that all those in jails will be released the way Rajnath Singh as Home Minister withdrew 12,000 cases against the young men," he added.