JKAP’s Altaf Bukhari makes bid to win over separatists in Srinagar’s old city

Apni Party President Altaf Bukhari along with other leaders carried out a roadshow as a part of election campaigning in old city Srinagar on May 6, 2024. | Photo Credit: Nissar Ahmad

J&K Apni Party chairman Altaf Bukhari on Monday made an attempt to reach out to those living in parts of Srinagar’s old city that are considered to be separatist hubs. 

Mr. Bukhari held a road show from the Dastigeer Sahib shrine to historic Jamia Masjid in Srinagar’s Nowhatta area. He offered prayers at the mosque, where Hurriyat chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq is the head cleric. 

“We have great regards for our revered saints. I have prayed for the victory of truth,” Mr. Bukhari said.

Mr. Bukhari has become the first mainstream leader since 1990 to offer prayers inside the Jamia Masjid, which once was the centre of separatist politics. 

“I praise the people of Shar-e-Khas for choosing the path of peace. Locals here have suffered since 1947. We remember how a former Mirwaiz was exiled from Kashmir,” Mr. Bukhari said.

He said he also wished well for the artisans, craftsmen and youth of the old city. “I prayed for their dignity,” Mr. Bukhari said.

He said the purpose of his visit to the Jamia Masjid was “to end the sense of poor treatment meted to the area for the past 70 years”, in an apparent reference to the National Conference’s (NC) rule.

Mr. Bukhari recently praised the Mirwaiz for his statement on elections, where he desisted from issuing a boycott call and warned the Centre against portraying these elections as a vote on the larger political problem. “Yes, this election should not be treated as a referendum,” Mr. Bukhari said.

Mr. Bukhari praised the Mirwaiz and said his “religious preacher’s status was higher than any of the political leaders”. “The Mirwaiz never believed in violence. His family has suffered violence since 1947,” Mr. Bukhari said.

Mr. Bukhari quit the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2020 and floated his own party. Ashraf Mir is the party’s candidate from Srinagar. 

Srinagar has always seen low voter turnouts in the past three decades in the wake of separatists’ boycott calls. Less than 14% voters came out in the 2019 Parliament elections to cast their votes in Srinagar.