Amid resignations, AAP loses steam in J&K

Arjun Sharma

Jammu, August 6

After initial hype in J&K when AAP won the Assembly poll in neighbouring Punjab last year, the party appears to have lost steam in the Union Territory with little interest from central leadership for its revival.

While the major activities of the party have come to a standstill, the leaders from Punjab and Delhi who were appointed to encourage the J&K leadership have made a few or no visit in the past.

Another reason behind the nosediving popularity of AAP in the UT is due to the exit of senior leaders, including former minister Harsh Dev Singh. Former legislator Balwant Singh Mankotia, who joined the party in April last year, was expelled in September for “anti-party activities”.

Harsh Dev Singh , who had become the chairman of AAP in the UT, quit in February and rejoined the J&K Panthers Party.

AAP leader Kuldeep Kumar Rao said leaders from other states had not been visiting as they were busy struggling with raids by the ED and the CBI. Whenever elections will approach, the party will again rise, he added.

AAP’s central leadership had appointed Punjab minister Harjot Singh Bains as election in-charge for Jammu division and Delhi minister Imran Hussain for Kashmir.

Insiders said that after initial visits, these leaders lost touch with the local leadership of J&K. Later, some meetings were conducted telephonically and through videoconferencing, but that did not help. “When the leaders from Punjab and Delhi stopped taking interest in J&K, the morale of local leaders declined. The party is still trying to revive but it requires combined efforts,” said a leader.

Pratap Singh Jamwal, party’s J&K spokesperson, said the party didn’t have a single office as headquarters in Jammu.

More leaders quit

• Taranjit Singh Tony, Yash Paul Kundal and Namrta Sharma resigned from AAP on Saturday. Tony said despite informing higher-ups about the lack of party activities, nothing was done.
• The situation for AAP is grim in J&K as no one is ready to listen to the grievances of local leadership, he added.