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| Bhaderwah by-election narrows to family affair | | | EARLY TIMES REPORT
Jammu, Apr 20- Nine candidates are left in the fray who are fighting for the by election to the Bhaderwah Assembly constituency, but the competition has narrowed down to a bitter contest within the family members of former chief minister of the state, Ghulam Nabi Azad who himself vacated the seat for a berth in the Rajya Sabha.
The picturesque constituency, known as Chota Kashmir, is communally sensitive assembly constituency which goes to polls along with the parliamentary election on April 23.
According reports Ghulam Ali Azad, brother of the former CM, continues to campaign in support of his party – the BJP candidate Dilip Parihar, Congress candidate Mohammad Sharif Niaz— Azad’s cousin, faces another cousin of the former Chief Minister, Mustafa Azad.
Ghulam Ali Azad has already touched the hornet’s nest when he jacked up the Muslim temper by claiming that they were wrong in the Babri Masjid issue, “There was no mosque there. Even if it was, the Quran says defiled place was not fit for offering prayers.”
The Azad family has to confront a brother who has gone to “enemy” number one, the BJP and another who is not supporting the family as well as the Congress nominee.
The Bhaderwah seat is witnessing third election in four years. It has been a give and take between the Azad family members.
Azad was elected from Bhaderwah in 2006 by-election after taking over as first Chief Minister of Jammu on November 2, 2005. The seat was vacated for him by his cousin Mohammad Sharief Naiz, who had won it in 2002 poll.
Pertinently, Ghulam Nabi Azad retained the Bhaderwah assembly seat by defeating his nearest BJP rival, Daya Krishen Kotwal, by a huge margin of 29,436 votes. Azad Later vacated the seat for a berth in the Rajya Sabha.
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