Mehbooba: My party to contest upcoming J&K assembly elections

Jammu, Sep 19 (UNI) Ruling out an alliance with its erstwhile coalition partner the BJP, president of Peoples Democratic Party, Mehbooba Mufti on Sunday said that her party will contest the upcoming Assembly elections.
“PDP will fight the (assembly) elections. So far as an alliance is concerned, the question is premature but one thing is absolutely clear that we will not go with that party (BJP),” Ms Mufti told reporters here on the sidelines of a party function.
The former chief minister said the situation in Jammu and Kashmir is far from normal which is evident from the twin attacks in Kulgam district in south Kashmir where a policeman and a non-local labourer were killed by militants on Friday.
The PDP president has made it clear time and again that she herself is not going to fight the assembly elections as her objective is to seek restoration of Article 370 of the Constitution which was abrogated by the BJP-led government in August 2019.
The BJP walked out of the PDP-led government in 2018, ending a three-year-old alliance with the party.
Referring to the one-day strike call given by Jammu Chamber of Commerce and Industry against for September 22 against alleged attempts to finish local trade by allowing big corporate chains to open their outlets in the UT, she said, “Those who the BJP claimed were in support of the abrogation of Article 370 are going on a protest strike”.