KL Report
Srinagar
PDP, State’s principal opposition that lost all the four seats in the legislative council sees the verdict as a mixed bag.
“It identified our strengths as also our weaknesses,” party spokesman Naem Akhter said. “It will help us manage future better.”
The verdict, Akhter said, has dispelled the notion that PDP is a Kashmir centric party. “We emerged No 2 everywhere,” Akhter said.
Admitting that the slide in parts of south Kashmir was not expected, Akhter said it will help the party revisit its engagement with the masses at the gross root level. Interestingly, the slide was visible in the segments that are represented by father and daughter – former chief minister Mufti M Sayeed and party president Ms Mehbooba Mufti.
But at the same time, he said the party did have gainful achievements from places that were not expected. It included areas like Uri and even Kupwara. In Kangan, PDP is as good as Mian Altaf is and even in Ganderbal, the party bagged a block totally.
“The major issue is that we need to engage Ladakh because the winning margins to the coalition victory came from the desert,” Akhter admitted. “This should be a priority now.”
In Jammu, PDP performed better than the local parties like BJP and Panthers Party which indicates its future prospects.
PDP had fielded former minister Peer M Hussain and businessman Yasir Reshi. While Hussain lost by a margin of 2675, Reshi lost to Monga with a margin of 2565 votes. Reshi has already lost 2002 elections to speaker Mohammad Akbar Lone.
