JK NEWS TODAY SPECIAL
Srinagar, March, 08: It had to happen. It is surprising that it took so long for the PAGD’s two main constituents – National Conference and PDP – to announce the end of the alliance that they had told people of Kashmir will live to fight for the restoration of the Article 370 and Article 35 A and the restoration of statehood. The fight, it was promised will last till the end, and they pledged that even if takes 70 years of struggle to achieve it they will not hesitate.
Practically, Today-March 8, 2024 is seven months short of its foundation in October 2020, and the alliance partners are fighting it in open, blaming each other for wrecking the group. National Conference leaders, in particular Omar Abdullah, has been ruthless in criticizing the PDP, citing the foul language against his party by the PDP leadership. For him, it was becoming “intolerable”.
All this is happening because National Conference wanted to contest all the three Lok Sabha seats in the Valley, conceding not even a single seat to PDP. The idea of PDP having a strong base in south Kashmir was rejected based on the party’s performance in the 2019 polls, when party president Mehbooba Mufti ranked third in the contest from Anantnag Lok Sabha seat.
PDP president Mehbooba Mufti did not mince her words in telling the people that “it’s NC that reduced the PAGD to a joke.”
. The PAGD, she declared and admitted with great dismay, as she put it, has been led to destruction by National Conference leadership- Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah, president and vice president of their party.
This is not a sudden development. The crisis was brewing for the last few years. In fact, it had started the very day, it was founded. The alliance was sewn with broken threads and the fabric that it wanted to weave never came into being.
The PAGD was formed in October 2020, serving as an abbreviation of People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration. Its political meaning was translated into a resistance against the August 5, 2019 decision of the Government of India to do away with Article 370 and bifurcation of the erstwhile state into two union territories . There was a façade of unity , but all the constituents were watchful of their interests. The flip-flop started from the day one . It violated its own vow not to engage in any political activity unless they achieve their “ sacred goal.” But with the announcement of the District Development Council polls in J&K in November 2020, the alliance diverted and launched their candidates in the fray. But there was nothing like the alliance . It soon started showing up when People’s Conference chairman Sajad Gani Lone parted ways . Thereafter, it was a mere formality . PDP and NC chose to engage in their old time rivalry , calling names to each other .
Today’s development has made two things clear that PAGD was formed to show a façade of unity to befool the people that this stood for the interests of the Kashmiri masses . the Alliance assumed the role of being the protectorate of Kashmiris, for it believed that it could become a relevant platform , and the situation would accrue benefits to it. There were gullible sections that believed that may be these parties have changed and they have understood the pain and hurt of the people in right earnest . But that was not to be. It became clear when it refereed announcing death of the Alliance over seat-sharing rather than on anything else.
Secondly , NC and PDP realized that they were on back foot for they had no explanation why terrorism could not be tamed in their times , and why the development failed to see birth in their rule (s). The people saw the development and change in the atmosphere, where they could live a normal life on their terms .
No tears will be shed for the demise of what was known as PAGD.
