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| Azad unofficially disbands DPAP as key leaders desert party! | | |  Sandeep Bhat
Early Times Report
Jammu, July 7: Although there are no official words, it appears former Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad has unofficially disbanded the Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP), following a series of high-profile defections back to the Indian National Congress.
The latest developments come after senior leaders and former ministers Taj Mohi-ud-Din and Ghulam Mohammad Saroori rejoined Congress on June 27, 2025, amid speculations that two other former ministers, Jugal Kishore Sharma and Abdul Majid Wani, are also set to return to the Congress fold.
Taj Mohi-ud-Din, a former legislator from Uri in north Kashmir, and Ghulam Mohammad Saroori, a former vice president of DPAP from the Jammu region, were welcomed back to Congress at the party’s Srinagar office by All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary Naseer Hussain and Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) president Tariq Hameed Karra. Both leaders, once close aides of Azad, had left Congress in August 2022 to join DPAP when Azad launched the party after parting ways with Congress. However, their brief stint with DPAP ended in disappointment, with Mohi-ud-Din quitting the party in August 2024 to contest the assembly elections as an independent candidate and Saroori leaving after being denied a ticket to contest from his traditional Inderwal constituency. Both leaders faced electoral defeats in the 2024 polls.
The return of Mohi-ud-Din and Saroori, coupled with reports of Jugal Kishore Sharma and Abdul Majid Wani preparing to rejoin Congress, has significantly weakened DPAP.
Sources indicate that Azad, witnessing the rapid erosion of his party’s leadership and its poor performance in the 2024 Lok Sabha and Assembly elections—where DPAP failed to secure a single seat and polled fewer votes than NOTA in several constituencies—has chosen to step back from active political engagement. In April 2025, Azad quietly dissolved all grassroots units of DPAP, signaling the party’s collapse.
Instead of focusing on political activities, Azad has been increasingly involved in non-political functions organized by the Gandhi Global Family, a non-profit organization promoting peace and social harmony.
His recent appearances at these events suggest a shift in focus away from the political arena, where DPAP has struggled to maintain relevance. Political analysts view this as a tacit acknowledgment of DPAP’s failure to resonate with voters in Jammu and Kashmir, particularly after allegations that the party was aligning with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which damaged its credibility among the region’s Muslim population.
Mohi-ud-Din, reflecting on his return to Congress, described it as a “homecoming,” stating, “I never felt I truly left Congress; it was merely a leave of absence.” Saroori echoed similar sentiments, expressing regret for his brief departure and pledging to strengthen Congress in the region. The return of these leaders is seen as a boost for Congress, which is looking to regain its foothold in Jammu and Kashmir ahead of future elections.
The anticipated return of Jugal Kishore Sharma and Abdul Majid Wani, both prominent figures in Jammu and Kashmir politics, is expected to further erode DPAP’s influence. Political observers note that Azad’s decision to unofficially disband DPAP reflects the challenges of sustaining a new political outfit in a region with complex political dynamics. As Azad shifts his focus to non-political endeavors, the future of DPAP remains uncertain, with Congress emerging as the primary beneficiary of its collapse. |
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