Traditional politicians left people at mercy of circumstances: Altaf Bukhari

Srinagar, Aug 14: Apni Party President Syed Mohammad Altaf Bukhari today said that the conventional J&K politicians left the people at the mercy of circumstances after the August 5, 2019, occurrences.

He stated that it was only the Apni Party that took the initiative to engage with the central government to get relief for “our people and protect their rights.” According to a press release, Bukhari was addressing an event at the party headquarters in Srinagar today. This event was organised to welcome Late Qazi Mohammad Afzal’s son, Qazi Umar Farooq, and his associates into the Apni Party fold. Qazi Afzal had represented the Ganderbal constituency in the legislative assembly after defeating the National Conference’s leader Omar Abdullah in 2002 assembly polls.

Extending greetings to the new entrants into the Apni Party fold, Bukhari expressed his optimism about Qazi Farooq’s potential to become a prominent figure in Ganderbal, following in the footsteps of his father, and gathering substantial public support in the days to come.

Explained how and why the Apni Party was established in March 2020. He said, “Following the events of August 5, 2019, when we witnessed people grappling with helplessness and uncertainty about their future, we decided to shoulder the responsibility of standing by our people during those trying times.”

He added added that the subsequent to the events of August 5, 2019, when the entire Jammu and Kashmir region was engulfed in turmoil and distress, the traditional politicians hid themselves and chose to remain silent. “They remained silent for about one and a half years following the abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A. However, the Apni Party took the proactive step of engaging with leaders in Delhi. Through our efforts, we succeeded in convincing the central government to provide an assurance that no demographic changes would be made here and that the people of J&K would continue to have their special rights regarding jobs and agricultural land in J&K,” he said.