Kishtwar Constituency: Direct Contest Between NC And BJP
Historically, Kishtwar, the biggest assembly constituency in the district, witnessed a direct fight between the National Conference (NC) and the BJP, and most of the time the NC emerged victorious. In the upcoming Jammu and Kashmir polls, NC nominee and former minister Sajjad Ahmed Kichloo will be facing BJP’s new face, Shagun Parihar.
In the 2014 elections, BJP Senior Leader and Jammu and Kashmir UT General Secretary Sunil Kumar Sharma wrested the constituency from NC. Sunil Sharma defeated then sitting NC MP Sajad Kichloo by a margin of 2,852 votes and became minister as well.
Also Read | J-K Assembly Polls: Congress Releases Third List, Ex-NSUI Chief From Bishnah
Sajjad Ahmed Kichloo
Sajjad Kichloo serves as the Zonal President of the NC and is a former minister. A scion of the influential Kichloo family, he is the son of NC veteran Bashir Ahmad Kichloo. After the demise of the father, he contested from Kishwar in 2002. In the polls, he defeated Congress candidate Gulam Haider Sheikh by 1663 votes. Kichloo retained the position in the 2008 elections, where he defeated the BJP’s Sunil Kumar by a margin of 2465 votes.
While serving as Home Minister in Omar’s cabinet, he made headlines at first when he slapped the chief executive officer (CEO) of Kishtwar Development Authority (KDA), Riaz Ahmed Choudhary, in Kishtwar district. Later, following uproar by all political parties in the Parliament over Kishtwar riot, Kichloo resigned from the post in August 2013 to ensure that the enquiry by the commission into the violence did not get influenced. When he was given a clean chit by the commission, Kichloo then got re-inducted.
He started his political career in 1996 and remained tehsil president of Youth NC. Kichloo became district president in 1998. He is requesting votes, reminding people of the work he has done in the past to advance the area in general and Kishtwar constituency in particular.
While the NC is repeating the candidacy of Kichloo, the BJP has fielded Shagun Parihar, a new face. Though she had no plans to join politics at least anytime soon, a tragic event has changed all her plans. On November 1, 2018, Shagun’s father, Ajit Parihar, and her uncle and veteran BJP leader and then secretary, Anil Parihar, were shot dead in a terrorist attack in Kishtwar.
She stressed that these elections are not just about her or her family but for all those who have sacrificed their lives for the nation. Through the candidacy of Parihar, the BJP aims to garner emotional votes in their favour.
Since her uncle was a strong BJP leader from the district, politics is not an alien territory for Parihar. She was active in local politics since student days. The development of all communities and advancement of mountainous Kishtwar district is her avid goal, Parihar stated.
Also Read | Jammu And Kashmir Election Phase 1: 9 Female Candidates In Poll Fray
Though PDP’s former MLA Firdous Ahmed Tak, Bahujan Samaj Party candidate, and three other independents are in the poll fray, the major contest is between NC and PDP.
