JAMMU: Mushtaq Ahmad Shah Bukhari, a well-known Pahari leader and former minister from Jammu and Kashmir, joined the BJP here on Thursday, giving the party a significant boost ahead of the parliamentary elections. Two-time Surankote, Poonch district MLA Bukhari resigned from the National Conference in February 2022 following a disagreement with party president Farooq Abdullah on the designation of Pahari-speaking people as Scheduled Tribes. At the party headquarters here, retired senior superintendent of police Shabir Geelani and former bureaucrat G M Khuwaja were among the hundreds of followers of Bukhari who were welcomed into the party by Jammu and Kashmir BJP president Ravinder Raina and other party leaders.“I have adhered to my pledge to join a party that satisfies our long-standing demand for ST status.” Bukhari told reporters, “I am grateful to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and Raina for providing justice to Paharis who have fought for the ST status for 40 long years.” Four communities—the Gadda Brahmin, Koli, Paddari Tribe, and Pahari Ethnic Group—have been added to the list of Scheduled Tribes in Jammu and Kashmir by the BJP-led central government. The former minister declared at a function that “we will not hesitate in supporting any party which will help the community in achieving its demand of ST status.” This comment did not sit well with the NC leadership, and they requested him to explain himself. This was after he resigned from the NC. After leaving the meeting, he tendered his resignation from the party’s basic membership, claiming to have had a “heated argument” with Abdullah about the matter. Raina stated, ”Bukhari is not only a political heavyweight but also a deeply spiritual figure who has a great deal of influence over people (from his group) in Jammu and Kashmir. His entry into the BJP will help the party’s grassroots efforts.He declared that there would be only one party remaining in Jammu and Kashmir and that there would be a wave of support for the BJP and the prime minister who had given justice to all segments of society who had been denied their rights for the previous 70 years. He also stated that the lotus, the BJP’s election symbol, would bloom throughout Kashmir, not just in Dal Lake. The Lok Sabha polls are scheduled for April or May.
