Early Times Report
Srinagar, June 26: Annoyed over style of functioning of JKPCC president particularly his attempt to project himself as poster boy of Congress party in the campaigning during Anantnag by-election, a number of Congress leaders refused to attend the protest demonstration against alleged rigging in the polls.
As soon as it became clear that Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti is going to win the Anantnag Assembly seat with a huge margin, the Congress candidate along with JKPCC president left the counting centre and staged a demonstration alleging irregularities in the election.
However, there was no one to take their allegations seriously as a
number of senior as well as middle rung Congress leaders, preferred to stay away from the protest.
Even as JKPCC Chief personally rang up the party colleagues to
immediately reach the venue of protest and join them, sources said that a number of Congress leaders either did not receive the call or claimed to be stuck somewhere despite them being present in the summer capital.
According to the sources in Congress circles, the drama over alleged unsealed Electronic Voting Machines was enacted on the instruction of PCC president for his own face saving, particularly in view of the fact that the party candidate could get less than half of the votes, he had secured in 2014 Assembly elections, against then PDP candidate late Mufti Mohammad Sayeed.
In the by-election, when there was apparent resentment among Kashmiri voters against the PDP for its alliance with saffron BJP, the Congress was confident to increase its number of votes and even winning the by-election. This was the only reason that JKPCC president presented himself as poster boy of the Congress campaign so that after victory of the party candidate or even in the case of getting more votes than secured in 2014, he could take credit for the same, sources explained.
However, the election result not only dashed his dream but also
established the apprehension of several other Congress leaders that image of JKPCC president would cost the Congress immediately.
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