Can Independent Candidate Advocate Latief Shake Up the Race?
Suhail Khan
Sopore, August 31 : The upcoming Assembly Elections in Jammu and Kashmir are being observed from a different perspective this time, as the political environment seems to be unlike anything seen before.
The political developments in Jammu and Kashmir over the past week indicate that the upcoming elections are likely to be quite intense, with the hope of a healthy competition among the candidates.
The changing circumstances and the shift in the political setup in North Kashmir’s Sopore constituency are no different, as the candidates are expected to engage in a fierce battle.
Kashmir Despatch’s ground survey has found that the Sopore seat is likely to witness an interesting fight between the competing candidates.
The ground survey provides a balanced report on the top contending candidates in the fray.
According to the survey, if the town votes in significant numbers, it could be a game-changer for the leaders contesting the seat.
In the fray, the National Conference and Congress Alliance candidates are fighting on the basis of mutual understanding, while a young leader from the PDP has also entered the race. The list of independent candidates is also growing, and sources suggest that at least 20 candidates have expressed interest in participating in this election.
The ground survey indicates a healthy competition between the NC candidate Irshad Rasool Kar, the PDP’s Irfan Ali Lone, and the independent candidate Advocate Latief Ahmad in the town.
As per the survey, the overall seat is seeing a healthy competition between the NC and Congress.
Political analysts, while speaking to Kashmir Despatch, have opined that the Sopore seat is leaning towards the Congress, but the town will be the deciding factor.
They believe that the town will be the deciding factor, and since the two candidates from the PDP, NC, and the independent Advocate Latief Wani are all local to the town, the independent candidate Latief has the most chances of taking the lead. This could potentially damage NC.
Who is Advocate Latief?
Advocate Latief Wani is currently serving as the president of Anjuman Mominul Sopore.
Sources believe that Advocate Latief started his political career with the National Conference (NC) party and was an active member before the militancy era. However, after the turmoil, he was sidelined by the NC, and he would occasionally make his presence felt, but he never officially resigned from the party.
According to sources, when Haji Ashraf Ganai won the Sopore seat and became an MLA in 2008, Advocate Latief was still seen distantly associated with the NC party. However, it was a surprise when, after an unfortunate incident in 2010 where Ghulam Nabi Khan was killed, Advocate Latief became actively visible again. Sources suggest that Latief had the notion that the NC would now give him a platform in Sopore, but that did not happen. In 2019, when Irshad Rasool Kar joined the NC after leaving the PDP, Advocate Latief was again seen distant from the NC.
Sources also revealed that after Irshad Rasool Kar joined the NC, efforts were made to bring him closer to the party, but this was never observed again.
Reacting to Advocate Latief’s candidacy as an independent candidate for this Assembly election, Sources told Kashmir Despatch that he could secure a good number of votes in the town, but he may not be able to win the overall seat.
Sources further clarified that he may not get full support from the Jamaat-e-Islami, despite their help in his Anjuman Mominul election victory. However, in this election, some individual Jamaat-e-Islami members may extend their personal support.
According to the sources, Advocate Latief can secure a vote share, but he may ultimately damage the NC’s prospects in the town, as some influential people are supporting him.
Now, it remains to be seen to what extent Latief Sahab can garner his voter base and secure their votes.
On the other hand, the analysts believe that the Congress leader Haji Abdul Rashid, who was a former MLA from Sopore, can strongly compete in his stronghold areas.
The analysts suggest that Haji Rashid is not as dependent on the town and his vote bank is mainly in the villages. Since the three top candidates are fiercely fighting for the town votes, the votes in the town will be divided among them, while Haji Rashid can strengthen his position by getting votes from the villages.
They further state that the other independent candidates who have emerged may also take away some votes from the town, making it difficult for the three top figures who are seen as having a strong base in the town.
If Haji Rashid’s previous election performance is considered, he has won in the villages, as Sopore town was in a boycott mode. Now, even if the people vote in good numbers, the votes will be divided among the three top figures from the town, and Rashid will have to rely on the villages again.
Meanwhile, sources told Kashmir Despatch that the Congress leader Haji Abdul Rashid does not appear to be as confident this time, and the party’s frequent changes may have had an impact. However, they also suggest that luck may once again favor Haji Rashid, and he seems to be in the race.
On the other hand, there is a lot of enthusiasm among the people in the Sopore belt regarding this assembly election, and a festive environment has been observed in the past week.
Talking to Kashmir Despatch, several political activists and workers expressed the hope that the Sopore seat will witness an interesting fight.
They said that this is the first time in history that Sopore is so excited about the elections, and everyone wants to vote this time for the sake of development, peace, prosperity, and a better Sopore.
They emphasized the need for change and expressed the hope that this election will change the system of Sopore.
