In the absence of any 'son'rise', it is time for the 'Laadli betis' to make their presence felt in the upcoming Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections.
On Tuesday, two daughters with strong claim to political legacy from the Jammu and Kashmir divisions filed their nomination papers for the first round of polling on September 18.
From Kishtwar, 29-year-old Shagun Parihar filed her nomination as the BJP candidate in the presence of J&K BJP chief Ravinder Raina.
She is the niece of late BJP leader Anil Parihar. Anil Parihar was killed by terrorists along with his brother Ajeet Parihar while they were returning home on November 1, 2018. Anil Parihar had considerable influence in the area and was an active member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
"It is the love of the people of Kishtwar that has motivated me to file my nomination. I am confident of my victory. I am also certain that the brothers, sisters, and elders of Kishtwar will support my candidature and ensure my victory by a large number of votes," the BJP nominee told reporters after filing her nomination at the office of the returning officer in Kishtwar. She emphasised that this mandate is not just for her family, but for the families of all martyrs in the region.
Shagun Parihar, pursuing a doctorate in electronics, expressed gratitude to the BJP for honouring the families of martyrs who laid down their lives for the nation and the party. She stressed that peace, security, employment, and women's empowerment would be the core areas of her work for the uplift of the mountainous district.
In the Valley, 37-year-old Iltija Mufti, daughter of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti, made her electoral debut by filing the nomination papers from the Srigufwara-Bijbehara constituency of south Kashmir.
Bijbehara is a traditional bastion of the PDP. It has been represented from 1999 to 2018 by senior party leader Abdul Rehman Veeri. "The party has reposed faith in me by fielding me from the Bijbehara Assembly constituency," Iltija told media persons in Anantnag on Tuesday.
She said that her grandfather, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, and mother Mehbooba Mufti had also started their political career from Bijbehara.
"Today, it is a very emotional moment for me and I am truly honoured," she said.
Mehbooba Mufti has vowed not to contest Assembly elections until Statehood is restored. In Kishtwar, BJP candidates Sunil Sharma and Tariq Keen also filed their nomination papers from Paddar Nagseni and Inderwal seats, respectively.
Meanwhile, the BJP on Tuesday named 29 more candidates for the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly polls, taking to 45 the number of seats for which it has announced its nominees. The BJP has made one change from the now-revised list, which was put out on Monday, as it has named Baldev Raj Sharma from Shri Mata Vaishno Devi seat in place of Rohit Dubey. All other names are the same for the same set of constituencies, announced on Monday before being withdrawn.
In Srinagar, the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference released a list of 32 candidates which included Omar Abdullah for the Ganderbal Assembly seat, a constituency that he represented from 2009 to 2014 when he was the Chief Minister of the NC-Congress coalition Government.
Omar had to take a U-turn as he had earlier decided to not fight for a seat in the legislature of a Union Territory.
Ganderbal is seen as a stronghold for the National Conference, having elected three generations of the Abdullah family. NC founder Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah had won the seat in 1977, followed by his son Farooq Abdullah who secured victories in 1983, 1987 and 1996. Omar Abdullah was later elected from the constituency in 2008.
In 2014, Sheikh Ishfaq Jabbar won the Ganderbal seat on a National Conference ticket. Prior to that, he had contested more than two elections unsuccessfully on a Congress ticket.
