Faced with an unending stream of its senior leaders deserting the party and joining the BJP backed Peoples Conference (PC) of former separatist Sajjad Lone, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Thursday held separate meetings of the core group of the party’s South Kashmir unit and also of the Srinagar unit to find ways to strengthen the party.

These meetings were being seen as an effort of the former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti to keep her flock together as Lone was continuing to poach her former ministers and legislators.

The PDP was, during the past few weeks, facing only desertions and not a single new face has come to join the party. Those who have deserted her have joined either the National Conference or the PC.

A PDP spokesman said that in a bid to assess party’s performance and take stock of its activities, a high-level meeting of Peoples Democratic Party’s senior leadership of south Kashmir was held on Thursday and was attended by former ministers, legislators, and senior leaders. The meeting was chaired by PDP vice president Abdul Rahman Veeri who was considered a trusted lieutenant of Mehbooba’s father, late Mufti Sayeed.

Veeri stressed upon the PDP leaders to focus on their respective constituencies and remain connected with people, party activists, and workers on the ground.

He said, “The PDP is the only party which has been keeping all the three regions of Jammu and Kashmir intact and united while prioritizing for the equitable growth and the fulfillment of the regional aspirations all across.”

Asserting that the main aim and objective of the PDP is to guarantee peace and stability in the state, Veeri said that the party’s earnest efforts in making Jammu and Kashmir a hub of peace and tranquility could be gauged by the fact that on all fronts, the PDP government in the state empowered youth and was successful in withdrawing more than twelve thousand FIRs registered against the youngsters.

“The party accorded a dignified life to these youth who were bundled in jails and PDP gave them a reason to put their lives back on track and prosper. The fact is that PDP is the only platform that gave voice to the people by providing the only viable and credible alternative to the people of Jammu & Kashmir,” said Veeri in a bid to woo the youth.

A separate meeting held in Srinagar under the chairmanship of Mohammad Khurshid Alam discussed measures needed for the party’s growth and strengthen it at the grassroots level in Srinagar.

Alam said though the present time is of tough ordeals in Kashmir, the PDP shall remain firm in its resolve to get the people out of the squalid conditions and accord them permanent prosperity they have been yearning for since decades.