Applied For Registration Of New Party, Says Ex-IAS Officer Shah Faesal

Former Kashmiri bureaucrat Shah Faesal has announced that he is launching a new political outfit and has already applied to the Election Commission for its registration. Shah Faesal made the announcement on NDTV's show Reality Check on Monday evening.

"I want to participate in elections... We are not going to join any existing party, we are going to start our own party, I want to make that announcement from the NDTV studio," the 35-year-old IAS topper, who quit the civil services last month, said.

Asked if he had a name for the party, he said, "The name needs approval of the Election Commission. I have filed the representation there. So I will need some more time before I can reveal the name."

Shah Faesal had earlier said his appeal for crowdfunding to launch a political movement in Jammu and Kashmir had received an overwhelming response. He said he will not accept any foreign funding and will make all donations public.

The idea behind crowdfunding is to seek involvement of youngsters with the politics he is seeking to create, the celebrated former bureaucrat said. Crowdfunding and series of meetings with the youth across regions has also given him an idea that his politics is not just about contesting parliament elections, he added.

Shah Faesal resigned from the IAS on January 9 saying Muslims had been reduced to second-class citizens. He also declared his readiness to contest the national election due by May but asserted he would not join any political party "as of now".

Speaking about the latest developments in Kashmir, including the withdrawal of security cover provided to several local politicians and people deemed to be at threat, Shah Faesal said, "It reflects some kind of thoughtlessness within the government... it's like pressing the wrong buttons." The former bureaucrat was one of the people whose security was revoked.

"It may be because of possible disagreements over my views or way of politics," he said.