00:00The people of Kashmir want to know what is our agenda and which terms the party president is working.
00:28It's very good for every politician to stay in a party, to grow. I would consider it unfortunate.
00:35They don't know where they belong. A person who doesn't know himself, how can he or she lead someone?
00:41So let's stop calling them leaders. We have National Conference is open as a political party.
00:47Anybody who chooses to espouse our ideology, only people who have such conviction will eventually join.
00:54Before joining PDP, you were in your own party. What was the reason?
01:03A deadlock was created after the 5th of August, 2019.
01:08We were all together and all the politicians were arrested.
01:15We were in a state of fear. We thought we could create an atmosphere and talk to the centre.
01:22But we were not ready. We got ready under the leadership of Mr. Bukhari.
01:26Unfortunately, after COVID-19, nothing could be done.
01:30We felt that whatever was supposed to happen, was not happening.
01:36So we thought that this is the leadership that can lead the whole region.
01:40But we were not ready. We thought we could only do it in Jammu, Kashmir, Ladakh.
01:44We thought it would be better to come under the leadership of Madam.
01:48The public was also saying that this is the best way.
01:52We felt that this is the best way.
01:56We felt that this is the best way.
02:00How is PDP different from other organisations?
02:04PDP speaks openly.
02:06PDP speaks openly.
02:09PDP speaks openly.
02:12PDP speaks openly.
02:15PDP speaks openly.
02:18PDP speaks openly.
02:21Are there leaders to join your party in the coming days?
02:24Yes, Inshallah. We think people are coming to know what is our agenda,
02:28and on which terms the party president is working,
02:31and what is the road map of Mufti Sahib.
02:33People are liking it, they are coming to our party and we are wholeheartedly welcoming it.
02:38The season of political migration has started.
02:41Leaders are switching sides and changing loyalties.
02:44There have been many leaders of your party have already left.
02:47How big a blow is it for your party?
02:50I would say that it is unfortunate that people who have been groomed in our party,
02:58and because of the reason best known to them,
03:00some of them have preferred to leave.
03:03While I can understand the compulsions,
03:06because you know this is election time,
03:09people have to contest.
03:11There might be many aspirants in the constituency,
03:14but at the end of the day the party chooses the most vulnerable candidate
03:19after looking at so many factors.
03:22But I am always of the opinion that one should stick to the party,
03:25because one comes to the party with some ideological similarities.
03:31And one, it is very good for every politician to stay in a party, to grow.
03:36I would consider it unfortunate that people are leaving.
03:40They should not leave, but I can at the same time understand the compulsions
03:44those people have from their workers, from their well-wishers.
03:48But it is all about elections.
03:50Will the exit of politicians, including some of your senior leaders,
03:53weaken the PDP?
03:58I don't remember any big name that has left our party.
04:04I mean, there has been an MLA in the recent year or so.
04:09In fact, I have seen people who have been MLAs
04:13and have been associated with our party,
04:15they have a desire to come back into the party.
04:18And we have seen a couple of them, maybe more,
04:20have already rejoined the People's Democratic Party.
04:25But yes, I see the exit of some very hard workers of PDP who have worked hard.
04:33But as far as big names like former MLAs or NLCs,
04:38I feel they are inclined towards joining PDP rather than leaving.
04:44Do you suspect the hand of your opponents
04:46with the exit of the leaders or workers or your cadres who are leaving the party?
04:52No, no, not at all.
04:54As I already told you, one of the reasons why somebody would leave a party
04:59is because maybe his aspirations are not fulfilled.
05:02Because as I told you, that a candidate is to be fired
05:06after looking at so many factors,
05:08so you can't field multiple candidates in a constituency.
05:11So there is compulsion from workers,
05:13from such a leader or political activist,
05:16which compels him to see other options.
05:19Election season is on and the politicians are shifting their loyalties.
05:24How do you see such a move at a time when the elections are just two weeks away?
05:28You see, if you look at the electoral trajectory of political parties
05:33and if you look at the electoral history of Jammu and Kashmir,
05:36ever since Shere Kashmir started with his movement against the Maharaja,
05:41ever since that day, what has happened is,
05:45you have the National Conference as a political party
05:47and the central government has consistently created these proxy political parties,
05:53wherein these political parties do not have any ideology.
05:58The only work that these political parties have to do,
06:02these proxy parties have to do,
06:04is to somehow defeat or weaken the National Conference.
06:07Over the course of years, we have seen that a lot of these political parties have accumulated.
06:11Because Bakshi's party was there, Sadiq's party was there,
06:15some more parties were there.
06:17We saw in the recent elections, more parties were collected.
06:20Eventually, once their work runs out,
06:23once their immediate work and once their immediate relevance runs out,
06:28these parties get accumulated.
06:30And the quote-unquote, I wouldn't call them leaders,
06:33I would say the people within these parties,
06:35since they have never had an ideology,
06:37they keep then looking at which party should we now go
06:41and it becomes like a revolving door kind of a thing.
06:44Wherein, when all these B-teams and proxy political parties have accumulated
06:49and people within these parties start revolving doors within those parties
06:53to see which person or which party is the best,
06:57wherein they can probably win a seat
06:59or where they can probably weaken National Conference the most.
07:03And fundamentally, the only one-liner,
07:06if you were to ask me this question, one-liners,
07:07because these people, these political parties have no ideology.
07:11There is only one task.
07:13The task is defeat the National Conference,
07:15weaken the National Conference
07:17and once the task runs out,
07:19then all these people are left to just change sides.
07:21Other parties, the exodus of leaders from other parties,
07:25somehow benefiting NC?
07:27There is no exodus.
07:29It's not that the exodus is happening and then they are just leaving politics.
07:33They are revolving within these B-teams.
07:35People from Apni party are going to BJP,
07:38BJP are going to some other party,
07:40these people are then going to some other party which was created in 90s.
07:44It's a revolving door thing happening pretty much within these parties.
07:48You don't see this happening in Jammu.
07:50For heaven's sake, tell me one thing.
07:52Ever since the abrogation of 370,
07:55Jammu, the region of Jammu and the region of Kashmir,
07:58both of us, we see very similar kind of problems.
08:02Our land is on sale, our culture is threatened,
08:05jobs are nowhere to be seen,
08:07the development that was promised is nowhere.
08:09We have very similar kind of problems,
08:12yet we do not see emergence of new political people,
08:16new political parties every second day in Jammu.
08:19In Jammu, you have the same 2-3 parties that you've had in 1970 or 1980,
08:24like the parties that you've had in 50-60 years back.
08:28Now come to Kashmir, shift your telescope to Kashmir.
08:31In Kashmir, in spite of the fact that it's much more dangerous
08:35to be a politician here because of militancy and other factors,
08:39you see there is a proliferation of these political parties.
08:43You have hundreds of independent candidates,
08:48you have hundreds of political parties.
08:50They have a full right to contest elections.
08:53I'm not questioning the right of these people.
08:56It's a democracy, anyone can come.
08:58But the answer is, who are they?
09:00Why are they coming?
09:02And most importantly, why is it that this does not happen in Jammu?
09:05I mean, I've never received an answer from,
09:08any credible answer from anybody saying,
09:10why is it that this happens in Kashmir and not in Jammu?
09:13Let's stop calling them leaders, sir.
09:15They're not leaders.
09:17A person who leads his people, leads them into battle,
09:21he or she leads them into victory,
09:23he or she leads them into good times,
09:26he or she leads them through bad times.
09:28A person who himself or herself doesn't know which,
09:32what ideology they espouse.
09:35A person who doesn't know where they belong.
09:37A person who doesn't know himself or herself.
09:39How can he or she lead someone?
09:41So let's stop calling them leaders.
09:43And coming to your question that, you know,
09:47Do you expect more leaders to join your party?
09:49Do we expect more leaders to, I mean,
09:51Maybe some prominent faces?
09:53We have, National Conference is open,
09:55as a political party,
09:57anybody who chooses to espouse our ideology,
09:59who chooses to espouse the ideology of land to the tiller,
10:02land to the people,
10:03health care,
10:05protection of Jammu and Kashmir,
10:07370 statehood,
10:09and strong regional front against the,
10:12against New Delhi,
10:14and they want to contribute in their little big way.
10:17I think National Conference will always be open.
10:19But as I said,
10:21very, it's an ideological party.
10:23Only people who have such conviction
10:26will eventually join.
10:28The season of political migration has started in Kashmir.
10:30Many political leaders are either switching sides
10:33or changing loyalties.
10:35But how much will their moves benefit the parties
10:38will only be known once the verdict is out.
10:41With camera person Irfan Shah,
10:43this is Izhar Ali in Srinagar for One India.
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