Would these Independent candidates influence Assembly election outcome in South Kashmir?

Srinagar, Aug 31: Several Independent candidates in South Kashmir are set to challenge traditional party candidates in the upcoming Assembly elections.

According to the details obtained by the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), these independent candidates are expected to offer significant competition in their respective constituencies.

Shabir Ahmad Kullay – Shopian

Shabir Kullay, who left the National Conference (NC) after being denied a party ticket, is running as an independent candidate in Shopian. In the 2014 elections, Kullay secured 12,000 votes, more than twice the number of votes received by the NC candidate at that time.

Supported by two District Development Council (DDC) members and civil society members from Shopian, Kullay is considered a strong contender in this election. The current competition in Shopian involves Yawar Banday of the PDP, Sheikh Rafi of NC, and independent candidate Shabir Kullay.

Aijaz Ahmad Mir – Zainapora

Former MLA Aijaz Ahmad Mir, who left the PDP after being denied a ticket, is a notable candidate for the Zainapora seat. Mir has the backing of the DDC Chairperson, other DDC members, and some independent candidates, making him a strong contender against NC’s Showkat Ganie and PDP’s Gh Mohiudin Wani.

Peer Mansoor – Anantnag

In Anantnag, a four-cornered contest is unfolding between Congress candidate Peerzada Mohammad Sayeed, PDP’s Dr Mehboob Beg, Apni Party’s Hilal Shah, and independent candidate Peer Mansoor. Previously associated with the PDP and later with the People’s Conference, Peer Mansoor is now contesting as an independent and is expected to provide a tough challenge to the other candidates.

Dr Ghulam Nabi Bhat – Tral

Dr Ghulam Nabi Bhat, NC’s constituency in-charge for Tral, is running as an independent after the Tral seat was allocated to Congress in the NC-Congress alliance. Bhat, whose family has a longstanding association with NC, is seen as a formidable opponent to PDP’s Rafiq Ahmad Naik, Congress candidate Surinder Singh Channi, and former PDP leader Dr Harbaksh Singh, who is contesting on an AIP ticket.

Choudhary Gulzar – Larnoo (ST Reserved)

Choudhary Gulzar, who is running for the ST reserved seat in Larnoo, is expected to give a tough fight to NC candidate Zafar Chowdhry and PDP candidate Haroon Chowdery. Gulzar, supported by his community and his wife, a former DDC member, has a solid base and could easily influence the election outcome.

Over 23.27 lakh voters are eligible to participate in the first phase of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly Election, scheduled for September 18, 2024. This includes 11.76 lakh male voters, 11.51 lakh female voters, and 60 third-gender electors, with 5.66 lakh youth voters also eligible to vote.

The notification for Phase I was issued on August 20, 2024, and the deadline for filing nominations was August 27, 2024. The scrutiny of nomination papers was conducted on August 28, 2024, and candidates were allowed to withdraw their nominations by August 30, 2024.

—(KNO)