SRINAAGR/NEW DELHI: Splinter groups from People’s Democratic Party (PDP), National Conference (NC) and Congress came together on Sunday to announce formation of a new political outfit, Apni Party , to provide an alternative to “family-owned” parties and move on, as some said, beyond “perpetually mourning” over abrogation of Article 370.

As reported by TOI on February 24, at least two dozen members of J&K Apni Party are ex-MLAs and former ministers of PDP, NC and Congress led by ex-finance minister of J&K and sacked PDP member Altaf Bukhari . The new formation draws its strength from scores of district-level functionaries across Kashmir drawn from the three main parties that governed the erstwhile state for several decades.

J&K’s special status was removed on August 5 last year and the state was turned into a Union Territory with a legislature. PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti and National Conference’s Farooq Abdullah and son Omar, all former CMs, were in detention since August 5 and have now been arrested under the stringent Public Safety Act.

Incarceration of the top leadership of PDP and NC is seen by many as the chief reason behind largescale defections in the two parties.

Congress called the new outfit an offshoot of BJP, intended to create “chaos and divisions” in J&K. “People have witnessed the offshoot of the saffron party in the political system of J&K and fully realise what is going on behind the curtains,” J&K Pradesh Congress Committee president G A Mir said in a statement.

NC and PDP described Apni Party as the “B-team of BJP” and said it was now becoming clear that detention of the top leadership of the two parties had nothing to do with law and order but was purely political.

“The way things are unfolding in J&K, it is pretty clear that the central government, in connivance with a few, are contriving to prop up yet another formation in J&K to serve its interests,” NC said. PDP state secretary Abdul Hameed Kousheen said while three former CMs were under detention, Bukhari and a few others were free to carry out their political activities.

Bukhari, appointed president of Apni Party, sidestepped criticism and blamed the leadership of PDP, Congress and NC for the developments. “We were waiting for the last seven months hoping that they will come out and raise issues and problems faced by the people. But as most leaders who were under detention have been released, they preferred to keep mum instead of raising those issues,” he said. He demanded that those in detention under PSA should be released.

Others who joined the new outfit include Usman Majid, a former minister and ex-MLA of Congress from Bandipora, PDP founding member Ghulam Hassan Mir , former PDP general secretary Dilawar Mir and former chief secretary and ex-NC MLC Vijay Bakaya among several former ministers and MLAs.

BJP's Kashmir unit welcomed the launch of Apni Party and said, “People were fed up with family politics in the Valley and now they want to see a vibrant change.” The party said it would work with the new outfit “for the development of the region”.

