BJP’s J&K chief Ravinder Raina is seen in a video asking people in election meetings in the border district of Poonch to vote for the “Bat symbol”.
In the absence of any BJP candidate on the Anantnag Lok Sabha seat, senior party leaders are now openly asking people to vote for the ‘Bat symbol’ of Altaf Bukhari’s Apni Party that has fielded Zafar Iqbal Manhas.
BJP’s J&K chief Ravinder Raina is seen in a video asking people in election meetings in the border district of Poonch to vote for the “Bat symbol”.
Although the BJP has not fielded its candidate for the Anantnag seat, its top leaders, including the party’s national general secretary and J&K in-charge Tarun Chugh, on Thursday, addressed a series of election meetings in Poonch where he asked people to support PM Modi’s vision of development and progress in J&K in these elections and reject Abdullahs, Muftis and Gandhis.
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The saffron party is concentrating on the Anantnag and Baramulla seats where it is reportedly supporting the Apni Party and Peoples Conference candidates.
Moreover, the party is seeking votes for these parties from the Pahari community to which the government recently granted Scheduled Tribe (ST) status and 10 per cent reservation in jobs.
Chugh called upon the voters in J&K to teach a lifetime lesson to the families of Abdullahs, Muftis and Gandhis for depriving the people of development and to “fill their family coffers”.
He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has ushered in J&K a new era of progress and development. In the election, it is time for the people to lend their support to the progressive vision of the PM.
Chugh specifically identified the political parties led by the Gandhi, Mufti and the Abdullah families as being guilty of “nepotism, terrorism, and corruption”. He claimed these families prioritised their own interests over the well-being of Kashmir, causing significant harm to the region.
Meanwhile, Apni Party candidate Zafar Iqbal Manhas separately addressed election meetings in Rajouri and Poonch.
PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti’s daughter Iltija Mufti, who is campaigning for her mother in Rajouri and Poonch, told the Pahari community that her mother would continue to fight for “your” rights.
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