Aijaz Ahmad Mir (image: facebook.com/aijazmirwachi)

Previously known as Wachi, Zainapora constituency is part of south Kashmir’s Shopian district. The political terrain of Zainapora is formed by various parties over the years. In the upcoming polls, the constituency, which is part of the Anantnag-Rajouri parliamentary constituency, will witness a tough fight between National Conference (NC)’s Showkat Hussain Ganie, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate and party state secretary Ghulam Mohiuddin Wani, and former PDP MLA Aijaz Ahmad Mir contesting as an independent candidate.

Observing the electoral history, from 1977 to 1996, the NC maintained four consecutive victories from the constituency. Meanwhile, in the 2002 elections, the seat was won by CPI (M) leader Mohammd Khalil Nayak. It was the decisive victory of PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti in 2008, garnering 12,810 votes, marked the constituency as a party stronghold. In the election, Ganie, who retreated to second position, could gather only 4,474 votes. In the 2014 Assembly election, PDP’s Ahmad Mir defeated Showkat Ganie by a margin of 1,805 votes.

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Showkat Hussain Ganie 

NC leader Showkat Ganie is contesting from the seat for a third time. Though his previous two attempts in 2008 and 2014 failed to deliver results, analysing the continuous engagement he makes in the constituency, NC has given an assembly ticket this time as well. By exercising his role as MLC, he maintained connection with the constituency, and the party hopes it would place him as a strong contender for the seat. Ganie’s brother-in-law Nazir Ahmad Wani and father-in-law Gh Qadir Wani represented the constituency three times from 1977 to 1987. Aside from a political persona, Hussain is a civil servant – 2012 Jammu and Kashmir Administrative Service (JKAS) officer.

Ghulam Mohiuddin Wani

Ghulam Mohiuddin Wani is the PDP candidate for the seat. When Mehbooba Mufti served as the MLA of Wachi, Wani served as the Public Relations Officer (PRO) for her. Since he has established good connections with the people of the constituency from then itself, his candidacy makes an apt choice for the seat. His extensive campaigning and long-standing connections make him a strong candidate for the constituency. The support Wani maintained in the assembly segment played a crucial role in Aijaz Ahmad Mir’s victory in 2014 polls.

Aijaz Ahmad Mir

Former PDP MLA and district president Aijaz Ahmad Mir will contest as an independent candidate in the upcoming polls. In 2014, Aijaz Mir secured victory in the assembly seat by securing 15,610 votes. In August this year, being denied a party ticket, he resigned from the PDP.  Mir said that he was shocked to realise that the party mandate was given to someone else, and not him, he told news agency Kashmir News Observer.

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Since he currently exercises the role of a DDC member, he possesses the support of DDC Chairperson Shopian Bilquees Bano and DDC Ab Rashid Lone Mantribugh, as well as a few independent members whose forms were rejected during inspection. Aside from that, now banned religio-political organisation Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) has officially extended its support to Ahmad Mir. JeI usually vote for the PDP. There are also high-chances Mir may also garner votes from NC, since his father Mohammed Jabbar Mir was an NC MLA in 1996 and had a substantial record as a party worker.

Will the split in votes in the PDP for Wani and Mir advance chances of Ganie’s victory in the seat? The verdict will tell. The Zainapora, along with 23 other constituencies, will go to booths on September 18.