Srinagar: Once a formidable force in Jammu and Kashmir, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) headed by Mehbooba Mufti is now grappling with a steep decline, with internal dissent, defections and a growing electoral challenge threatening its future.
Founded in 1999, the PDP emerged as a significant player by capitalising on anti-National Conference (NC) sentiment and positioning itself as a bridge between separatists and mainstream politics. The party’s early success was marked by its alliance with the Congress in 2002 which saw the PDP founder Mufti Mohammad Sayeed become chief minister, riding on a wave of public support driven by his promise of dialogue between India and Pakistan.
During Mufti’s tenure, cross-border relations improved and dialogue between New Delhi and separatist leaders saw some momentum. The party’s rise continued in 2008 and 2014 elections where it made significant gains, especially in South Kashmir, and even broke into NC’s stronghold in Srinagar.
Also read: The NC and the Congress’s Hubris Has Put Them – and All of Kashmir – in a Risky Place
However, the PDP’s decision to form a post-poll alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) after the 2014 elections became a turning point. Seen as a betrayal by many in Kashmir, the alliance eroded the party’s support base. Mufti Sayeed’s description of the alliance as a “meeting of the North and South Poles” did little to quell discontent.
Professor Noor Ahmad Baba, a former dean at the University of Kashmir explained:
“The PDP was seen as an alternative to the NC. For a while, we essentially had a two-party system, with the NC and PDP taking turns in power. But when the PDP decided to join the BJP, they lost credibility because people saw them as the party that opened the door of J&K for the BJP.”
Even though the PDP went into the coalition with the idea of fostering peace and protecting Article 370 and 35A, they were left disillusioned when the BJP turned around and revoked Jammu and Kashmir’s special status, he said.
The party’s troubles deepened after Mufti’s death in January 2016 when Mehbooba struggled to hold the party together amid rising civil unrest in Kashmir. By the time the PDP lost key leaders such as Muzaffar Hussain Baig and Haseeb Drabu, internal dissent was growing with accusations of secret dealings with the BJP further fracturing the party.
Senior PDP leader and party spokesperson Naeem Akhtar said the PDP-BJP alliance was formed in the “interest of the people of Jammu and Kashmir”.
“If we were only after power, we would’ve never allied with the BJP — it hurt our growing popularity. We entered into that alliance after making them sign an Agenda of Alliance, which was meant to protect the dignity and rights of our people.”
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Akhtar noted that after 2014, several forces joined hands against them, creating hurdles in the government’s functioning.
“Mehbooba Mufti offered a ceasefire to the militants, but her efforts were sabotaged. We opened the doors for dialogue with the separatists, but they turned us down.”
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In the 2019 parliamentary elections, Mehbooba suffered her first electoral debacle in South Kashmir, once considered a PDP stronghold. The situation worsened after the reading down of Article 370. The party faced defections to other political groups, including the Apni Party, the Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP), and the People’s Conference.
Efforts to rebuild its base in Kashmir have been hampered by internal strife and challenges from both the NC and Congress, which have formed an alliance in the region. Akhtar, a former J&K minister, accused the NC of undermining the INDIA bloc.
“They did it during the parliamentary elections, and they’ve done it again in the assembly polls. Both times, it only benefited the NC, not Congress, as the results in Jammu and Ladakh clearly showed. Even now, the NC is making seat-sharing a precondition for any alliance with Congress. Their focus is on power, while our goal is to give a voice to the people in an already disempowered assembly,” Akhtar said, adding that the PDP was open to a post-poll alliance with the Congress and “Rahul Gandhi’s ideological stance”.
However, the NC spokesperson Ifra Jan criticised the PDP’s approach, pointing out that the party fielded candidates against the INDIA bloc in the last elections.
“If you field candidates against the alliance, how can you blame others for sabotage?” she asked.
The PDP’s internal divisions have been laid bare with several disgruntled leaders either contesting independently or joining rival parties. Ajaz Ahmad Mir, a former PDP legislator, is now running under Engineer Rashid’s Awami-e-Ittihad Party (AIP) banner from Wachi-Zainpora.
“Mir was repeatedly summoned multiple times for his association with the party. Despite his loyalty during tough times, Mir was passed over in favour of Ghulam Mohiudin Wani, a senior but lesser-known figure,” a PDP insider told The Wire.
Analysts suggest that Mir’s strong voter base would have been an asset for PDP, but his departure means the contest will be between him and Showkat Ahmed Ganai of NC with Ganai now having the advantage.
Similarly, the District Development Council (DDC) member Harbakash Singh, who was denied a ticket in favour of Rafiq Naik (son of former NC parliamentarian and speaker Ali Muhammad Naik), could impact the PDP’s chances in the Tral assembly segment. Singh is now contesting on an AIP ticket.
The PDP had won the Tral and Wachi seats in the last two assembly elections, but retaining them this time would be an uphill task. In Rajpora, Syed Bashir, who switched from the PDP to the Apni Party, was given a ticket.
Akhtar, however, argues that Bashir was chosen over someone who left the party in an apparent reference to Drabu. DDC members Qayoom Mir from Pulwama and Raja Waheed from Shopian, as well as tribal leader and social activist Talib Hussain, who sought a mandate from Larnoo-Kokernag on a reserved seat, have also left the party.
Resignations have also hit the party in North Kashmir with the chief PDP spokesperson Suhail Bukhari joining Congress after Basharat Bukhari was favoured for the party ticket over him in Kreeri-Wagoora. Another spokesperson Tahir Syeed from Kupwara has also left the PDP with the party having minimal presence in Srinagar, Ganderbal, and Budgam districts of Central Kashmir.
Also read: What Does Jamaat-e-Islami’s ‘Return’ to Electoral Politics Mean for J&K?
A PDP insider said that sidelining loyal leaders in favour of turncoats or less known candidates will further hurt the party’s electoral prospects. Iltija Mufti, daughter of Mehbooba, who joined the party as spokesperson after the reading down of Article 370 in 2019, was preferred over Abdul Rehman Veeri, a four-time MLA from Bijbehara who was given a ticket for the remapped Anantnag East (Shangus) assembly.
This sets up a tight contest between Iltija and senior NC leader Syed Bashir Ahmad Veeray in Bijbehara, the Mufti family’s hometown. Iltija, however, said that the decision to contest polls from her hometown was the party’s decision and that she felt emotionally connected to that place.
“Bijbehara has not just been a bastion but there is an emotional bond between the people of Bijbehara and me. My grandfather was born here and my mother successfully won her first election here. So, I am not stepping in as a politician, people here see me as a daughter,” she said.
Iltija actively campaigned for her mother in the recently held parliamentary elections for Anantnag constituency but the campaign failed as the seat was won by NC’s tribal leader Mian Altaf Larvi.
The PDP is, however, expected to perform well in Devsar and Anantnag, where NC-Congress coalition candidates are seen as relatively weak, but faces stiff competition in the reframed Anantnag West (HomeShalibugh) assembly segment.
With several NC leaders now running as independents after being dropped in favour of coalition partner Congress, the PDP might gain some advantage in Tral and Shopian in South Kashmir. However, the Pulwama assembly segment, where the PDP youth leader Waheed Para is contesting, seems to be the only safe seat for the PDP at the moment.
Para, who was jailed for over two years following the revocation of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status, still enjoys considerable support in his area. Akhtar, however, dismisses concerns about internal party conflict.
“Only those leaders with issues left the party. It won’t affect us much, but it won’t benefit them either,” he said.
Baba said that while the PDP still retains pockets of support in South Kashmir, it is no longer the dominant force it once was.
“The party isn’t dead, but it is struggling. The NC, with its historical roots, has performed better, and the PDP will have a hard time bouncing back in the current election.”
Khalid Gul is an independent journalist based in Kashmir and has been covering the region for over a decade.
