PDP’s Waheed Parra may get Srinagar ticket

Naseer Ganai

Srinagar, March 23

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is likely to field Waheed-ur-Rehman Parra as its candidate for the Srinagar constituency if the National Conference opts to field candidates for all three Kashmir seats, party insiders have said. The decision has been taken keeping in view Parra’s political outreach and his stance against the BJP, particularly in the altered political scenario since the abrogation of Article 370. “Five constituencies of Pulwama district and one of Shopian are now part of Srinagar’s parliamentary seat and that makes Waheed a tough competitor. Also that Waheed has been working for over 10 years and has worked hard to bring youth in mainstream. This makes him a suitable candidate,” a senior party leader said.

Parra’s political journey started with the PDP as a worker. But it is his rapport with the youth that propelled him swiftly through the party’s ranks. His first big break came when he was appointed president of the party’s youth wing by Mehbooba Mufti in May 2015. Later, he assumed the role of political analyst in the CM’s office under Mufti Mohammad Sayeed’s tenure. Throughout both Mufti Sayeed and Mehbooba’s chief ministerships, Parra was considered as part of the inner circle of the party.

Parra’s youth engagement earned him praise from Union Minister Rajnath Singh in 2018 for mobilising hundreds of young individuals at a function in Srinagar. However, after abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019, he was among the detainees for opposing the Central government’s decision to remove the special status of J&K.

In 2019, former CM and National Conference president Farooq Abdullah won the Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency by defeating his nearest rival (PDP’s Aga Syed Mohsin) by over 70,000 votes.

The Srinagar parliamentary constituency comprises 17.41 lakh voters, including 8.68 lakh women. The constituency has a record low voting.

According to the Election Commission’s data, 2,135 polling stations have been designated in Srinagar, Ganderbal, Budgam and parts of Shopian that fall under the redrawn boundaries of the Srinagar parliamentary constituency after delimitation.

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