Waheed Parra: PDP's Youth Leader To Wrest NC Bastion, Srinagar (image: facebook.com/parawahid/)

In the Lok Sabha election, Waheed Ur Rehman Parra, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Youth president, is fielded from Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency. He is a close associate of party chief and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti. In the poll battleground, he is pitted against National Conference (NC) nominee Aga Roohullah and the Apni Party’s Mohammad Ashraf Mir.

During one of the campaign trails, the PDF leader stated that his party has vouched to obtain the release of Kashmiri youths imprisoned under stringent laws such as the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) and the Public Safety Act (PSA). Following the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019, Waheed Parra was jailed for around 19 months under the UAPA for opposing the Centre”s move. In 2023, Parra was chosen as the Yale Peace Fellow; but the Indian government denied him a passport, and it prevented him from pursuing the fellowship.

The PDP leader, who is a staunch advocate of people’s rights and self-representation, holds that Lok Sabha elections will definitely address the existing political gap in the Valley by giving Kashimiri people an opportunity to ascertain democracy. While partaking in campaigns among Srinagar youths, Waheed Parra urged people to consider the Lok Sabha elections as a referendum to send a message to the national capital. “Don’t treat this election as less than a referendum. Your vote should become your referendum. There is a need to send a message to New Delhi – that don’t treat the silence of Kashmir as happiness,” the Indian Express reports, as Waheed Parra is saying.