Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Jan 7: PDP president Mehbooba Mufti is likely to be sworn-in as new Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, most likely, tomorrow and would become first woman and 13th CM of the State.
Like his father, Mehbooba would also be heading the PDP-BJP coalition Government, which has already completed a little over 10 months and still has more than five years term. Mehbooba might not face tough time in the Assembly as the two coalition partners have nearly two-third majority in the Assembly and comfortable majority in the Legislative Council.
PDP has 28 MLAs, which have been reduced to 27 with the death of Mufti Sayeed and the party has support of an Independent MLA from Zanskar Bakir Hussain Rizvi. BJP has 25 MLAs and support of three others including Pawan Gupta from Udhampur and two from Sajjad Lone’s, People’s Conference.
Observers were of the view that Mehbooba could contest Anantnag Assembly seat to make it bastion of the party. In turn, she would have to give up the membership of Lok Sabha seat from Anantnag, which she had won with a handsome margin in April-May 2014 Lok Sabha elections. The PDP had won all three Lok Sabha seats of Kashmir in 2014 including Srinagar, Baramulla and Anantnag and emerged single largest party in the Assembly election in the same year.
No one from the BJP has so far opposed Mehbooba’s elevation.
Unlike the long delay in stitching the alliance with PDP last year, the BJP will have to make up its mind quickly with the budget session of the Assembly slated to begin on January 18. The PDP, BJP had taken two months to stitch the alliance and formed the Government on March 1, 2015 though the Assembly elections were declared in last week of December, 2014.
Mehbooba, who has assumed an image of a fiery leader, started her political career in 1996 by joining Congress along with her father. She remained Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader in the Assembly for three years till Mufti Sayeed decided to quit Congress and float region outfit, the PDP. Mehbooba resigned her Assembly seat of Bijbehara, which was won by PDP leader Abdul Rehman Veeri. Since then, Veeri had never lost Bijbehara seat.
The 56-year-old mother of two daughters, Mehbooba is also president of the PDP. She won her first Assembly election as Congress candidate from her home segment of Bijbehara in 1996. She played an active role in the PDP putting up a good show by winning 17 seats in 2002 Assembly elections i.e. within three years of the formation of Government. Mufti Sayeed became the Chief Minister leading PDP-Congress coalition Government.
Mehbooba also played a key role in her father’s victory as Congress candidate in Lok Sabha elections of 1998 when Sayeed defeated NC’s Mohammad Yousuf Taing from South Kashmir.
In 2004, Mehbooba contested and won her first Lok Sabha election, from South Kashmir.
In 2008, she contested and was returned as MLA from Wachi segment of Shopian in south Kashmir when PDP bagged 21 seats but lost power to NC-Congress coalition. She played key role in the Assembly as Leader of Opposition for six years and PDP managed to reach to the tally of 28 and emerged as single largest party, which returned Mufti Sayeed as Chief Minister but, this time, as head of PDP-BJP coalition Government.
Mehbooba has never lost an election from South Kashmir so far.
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