Imran Reza Ansari claims he has the support of close to half the PDP’s MLAs who share his sentiments about Mehbooba being ‘dictatorial, nepotistic’.
Srinagar: Former Jammu & Kashmir minister Imran Reza Ansari of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) does not discount the possibility of PDP rebels joining hands with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to form a new government in the besieged state.
Ansari has emerged as one of the most vocal critics of the Mehbooba Mufti administration since its collapse last month.
He has accused the former chief minister of ignoring the party in favour of her coterie of relatives and acquaintances, a charge he reiterated in an interview with ThePrint.
The BJP and the PDP had come together to form an unlikely coalition after the 2014 assembly election threw up a hung assembly — the PDP’s 28 seats along with the BJP’s 25 gave the alliance a majority in the 87-member house.
However, the alliance fell through in June after the BJP withdrew support while blaming the Mehbooba government for the Valley’s deteriorating security situation.
Ansari claims he has the support of close to half the PDP’s MLAs, who, according to him, share his sentiments about Mehbooba being “dictatorial, nepotistic and inaccessible as chief minister”.
“Mehboobaji never spoke about the issues that the PDP got the people’s mandate for. There was no talk of development,” he told ThePrint by phone.
“When she came to power, the entire party was hijacked by three to four people who were close to her. The leaders who understood the pulse of the people were never asked for their inputs or opinions,” he added.
One could argue that the timing of the rebellion is convenient, but Ansari denies the charge.
“I have always shown my displeasure over the working of the CMO. I have objected to what was going wrong consistently for the past two years. It reached a point when I resigned from my post as well,” he said.
“I strongly feel you cannot keep hiding things from the people who have elected and reposed their faith in you,” Ansari added.
In fact, Ansari reiterated a statement he made earlier, that the BJP’s decision to call it quits was correct.
“The BJP took the right decision in ending the alliance with the PDP because, in an alliance, both partners need to do their bit. We have to give the devil its due,” he said.
“The BJP gave Mehboobaji whatever she wanted. Even when she asked for a ceasefire, they agreed,” he added.
Ansari, the son of a former minister himself, also sought to issue a clarion call to end “family raj” in the Valley, a reference to Mehbooba, the daughter of PDP founder Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, and the Abdullahs, who lead the J&K National Conference.
He hints strongly at the possibility of a third front.
Although there have been reports that the BJP is in talks with PDP rebels and Sajad Lone’s People’s Conference to form a new government in the state, the BJP has categorically denied any such possibility, saying they were in support of continuing Governor’s Rule.
‘There are others also’
Asked about reports of the alliance, Ansari said, “It is too early to comment on an alliance with the BJP. But it’s not just them. There are others also. There are like-minded people in the Congress and the National Conference who have been touch with us. However, I would not name any of them until I have the proper permission to do so.”
“I have a lot of party workers and district presidents contacting me for the same,” he added, “Kashmir is in want of a leader who doesn’t believe in double standards. The state has seen a monopoly of two families. It is time to end the two-family rule.”
When asked whether MLA Lone is that mass leader, Ansari is circumspect. “It can be a Sajad Lone, or an Imran Ansari. We haven’t still decided that,” he said.
Given the fact that the two are old friends and Lone is known to be close to the BJP, the possible constitution of a third front seems easy to guess, and Ansari doesn’t discount the possibility. “Why not, if it’s for Kashmir? You need people who don’t live in illusions and are rather straightforward and mean business. You need people who don’t plead emotionally to Kashmiris and politically to New Delhi,” he added.
He, however, admits that the anger in the Valley is not conducive to an alliance with the BJP just yet. The BJP government at the Centre is seen to have adopted a hardline approach to crack down on terrorism in the Valley, with civilian deaths in militant operations fomenting resentment among locals.
Many in the Valley say the political situation will get much clearer once the Amarnath Yatra season ends in August.
Even though the Jammu and Kashmir assembly is in suspended animation and can be dissolved by the governor if no party or group stakes claim to form the government, Ansari is not ready to give a time-frame for the formation of this third front. “It will take time,” is all he says.
This guy needs a clean shave so that his real face comes to fore.