Naveed ul Haq
Srinagar, Nov 14: Peoples Democratic Party leader Iltija Mufti on Friday said the party’s historic win in the Budgam Assembly by-election marks the beginning of PDP’s revival. She added that the result reflects not only a political shift but also the people’s disappointment with the National Conference’s leadership.
Her remarks came after PDP candidate Aga Syed Muntazir Mehdi won the Budgam seat by a margin of 4,478 votes, breaking the decades-long dominance of the NC in the constituency.
Iltija said the verdict was a people-driven mandate. “This is not just the victory of the PDP but of the people of Budgam. They have made the right choice. They voted for the same party for 30 years, and last year, when they elected Omar Abdullah and made him the Chief Minister, they saw him break every promise he made,” she said. “The people of Budgam have given a befitting reply to the U-turn taken by the CM. It is a consensus on his failure and a clear indication that the people were not happy with him.”
Mufti said the victory was hard-earned despite the PDP being in the opposition. “We were in the opposition with just three MLAs, while the NC had all its MLAs and full government machinery campaigning here. Despite that, PDP won — and this marks the start of the party’s revival from Budgam,” she said.
According to her, PDP’s grassroots engagement played a key role. “Our leaders worked hard, remained connected with people on the ground, and this result is the outcome of that sustained effort,” she said.
Responding to CM Omar Abdullah’s recent remarks urging people to vote for those in government for development, Iltija said voters had rejected that argument. “Our three MLAs achieved more in one year than many others. If his logic held true, he would have won this seat — but he didn’t,” she added.
PDP’s win in Budgam is the party’s first-ever victory in the constituency and raises its tally in the Jammu & Kashmir Legislative Assembly from three to four.
