Iltija Mufti, a third-generation politician from the Mufti family, running for her first election | Photo: Kaleem Geelani
It is 11am on Saturday. Bijbehara, the People’s Democratic Party’s (PDP) family stronghold in south Kashmir, is abuzz with songs and slogans blaring from loudspeakers on packed trucks following a caravan of flitting green vehicles.
This is just another day of campaigning for Ilija Muftia third-generation politician from the Mufti family who is contesting her first election. She is following in the footsteps of her grandfather and PDP founder Mufti Mohammad Syed and her mother Mehbooba Mufti, who started their political careers from the Srigufwara-Bijbehara local seat. After a door-to-door campaign, she speaks to Kaleem GeelaniEdited excerpts:
Kashmir has a long history of hostility towards the electoral process. What has changed, especially in the context of the abrogation of Article 370?
There is more disillusionment now because the question people are asking is, “So much has been taken from us and we don’t know what the mainstream could do.” This has put us in a crisis of credibility. But now people understand that their vote is going to matter; only politicians and parties are going to solve their problems. In the last five years they only saw bureaucracy and they were confronted by bureaucracy. Of course, that is a cause of concern for them because, after all, the stakes and the responsibility of their local representative are much greater than that of an Indian Administrative Service officer.
The PDP needs to rebuild itself. What has it done to gain popular support?
I am interacting a lot with people. I don’t want to appear privileged or elitist, and that is why I am visiting every corner of Bijbehara. In fact, right now we are on one of the streets of Bijbehara. I may belong to the mufti’s family, but I understand that I will have to earn respect here.
What do you think of the pre-election coalition formed by the National Congress and the Congress? Why were you, as a member of the INDIA bloc, left out of the coalition?
Whether we have been pushed or cornered, I think the coalition is a good idea.
Is your manifesto realistic, given that significant powers have been conferred on the deputy governor? Even if you are elected, don’t you think that there will be no bigwigs in the government?
What is the use of a leader or a political party’s work if the impossible is not achieved? During the time of Atal Bihari Vajpayee (as Prime Minister), nobody thought that the Indian government would facilitate trade and travel with Pakistan. But he made the impossible possible. So, as you know, in politics you have to do the difficult and you have to work hard to achieve it. We are at the lowest point in our history. If I don’t give people hope, who will?
Jamaat-e-Islami has returned to mainstream politics. In the past, the PDP dominated its narrow voting space. Don’t you think this will affect its vote share?
We believe that the reason why the history of Jammu and Kashmir has taken a turbulent turn is that the National Conference banned and criminalised Jamaat and rigged the elections in 1987. We welcome their participation. Jamaat has done some incredible work, like running free schools. It doesn’t matter if it affects our vote bank. One cannot be so petty in politics.
How confident are you of your victory?
Crowds don’t mean electoral support, you have a silent voter. But here I feel there is a genuine emotional connection with me.
First published: September 13, 2024 | 10:54 PM IS
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