The abrupt resignation of former Union Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad from the Congress, as well as his scathing attack on Rahul Gandhi, has transferred the attention of Jammu and Kashmir’s frozen politics, as well as party divisions, onto the veteran Congress leader.
Azad said in his resignation letter to Sonia Gandhi that the Congress had been “comprehensively destroyed” and had reached a point of no return.
In his resignation letter, Azad claimed that the Congress has given “national political space to the BJP” and “state level space to regional parties”. It was clear that the senior leader wanted to try his hand at politics in Jammu and Kashmir presently.
Azad, who served as chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir from 2005 to 2008, has a large popularity among the Congress’s J&K unit. Most of the leaders are likely to join him if he decides to form his own party in the coming days.
Political commentators and politicians alike regard Azad as the best option for resolving the vexing issue of Kashmir. The septuagenarian politician organised massive political rallies in Jammu and Kashmir late last year.
“In the coming weeks, most of the leaders and workers of the Jammu and Kashmir unit of Congress may join Azad if he floats his own party, which is most likely going to happen. In the next Assembly election in J&K, Azad will emerge as a key player,” stated an unidentified senior Jammu and Kashmir Congress leader.
According to the top Congress leader, Azad was in daily contact with a large group of leaders and workers about the formation of a new party. “Azad enjoys the support of most of the leadership in J&K. Jammu region, where the Congress party’s vote bank lies, has no issues with the scrapping of Article 370. (But) people in Jammu want restoration of statehood and some guarantees on jobs and land rights, which is something Azad has already demanded,” the leader added.
The 73-year-old former Union minister was known to hold strong opinions on Article 370 and nearly all pending issues in Jammu and Kashmir. “The BJP government has achieved its aim of scrapping Article 370, and now wants the democratic process to flourish in J&K. There can’t be anybody better than Azad to lead the process at the moment,” political analyst and TV debater Majid Hyderi told the reporter.
J&K has been ruled by the Union government since June 19, 2018, following the collapse of a coalition government led by Mehbooba Mufti following the withdrawal of its partner, the BJP. The long-awaited Assembly elections are scheduled for April-May of next year.