In Valley, BJP plans to expose ‘politics of lies’

M Aamir Khan

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, March 25

The poll campaign of the BJP will focus on exposing the ‘politics of lies’ by the Valley-based parties.

The party candidates that filed nominations for the Srinagar and Baramulla Lok Sabha seats said their campaign would revolve around the issues of unemployment and corruption facing the state.

“Set aside falsehood and speak the truth.... This will be our agenda. People have seen how much lies the leaders of this place have told them. Exposing the politics of lies will be our main issue besides ending unemployment and corruption,” said BJP candidate for the Srinagar parliamentary seat Khalid Jehangir after filing his papers.

Talking about the ‘anti-communal forces’ campaign launched by the other parties, he said: “The youth know the truth.... How (NC’s Srinagar candidate) Farooq Abdullah brought his son (Omar Abdullah) from London and made him an MP with the BJP (during former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s tenure) and how former Chief Minister (Mehbooba Mufti) made her brother a minister with the support of the party (in the last coalition in J&K).... Time has come to expose their lies.”

A former journalist, Jehangir had joined the BJP in 2014 and is contesting the elections on the party ticket for the first time. He was accompanied by senior BJP leaders Sat Sharma and Ramesh Arora.

Maqbool War, BJP candidate from Baramulla, too filed his nomination papers on Monday and said the party would also seek votes on their achievements. “We will fight on the basis of our achievements such as approving the detailed project report for the Sopore-Kupwara railway track and the construction of a tunnel at Sadhna Top on Kupwara-Karnah,” he told reporters.

War, who was accompanied by BJP general secretary (organisation) Ashok Kaul, also hit out the NC’s Baramulla candidate for his ‘pro-Pakistan’ sloganeering during a campaign. “He (Lone) raised Pakistani slogans in the Assembly and after filling the form, he resorted to emotional drama. He took an oath that he will be loyal to the Indian sovereignty and now he is abusing the same,” said War, who had joined the BJP in 1994.

Meanwhile, the spokesman of the BJP, Altaf Thakur, wrote to the Chief Electoral Officer, J&K, seeking disqualification of Lone’s candidature for ‘causing disrespect to the country by raising pro-Pakistan slogans’.