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Basharat Peer in Pahalgam
She has been projected as a likely chief minister of Jammu & Kashmir if her party, the People's Democratic Party, forms the government with support from other parties.
Over the last six years, Mehbooba Mufti has grown beyond being just the daughter of veteran Kashmiri politician Mufti Mohammed Sayeed.
Father and daughter have been concentrating on their home turf, the southern Kashmir district of Anantnag, especially the Bijbehara and Pahalgam constituencies, for the last few years. Though they have not had much to offer by way of development or jobs, they have focussed on the politics of compassion.
Pictures of Mehbooba Mufti consoling and at times shedding a few tears with the families of victims of violence have generated a soft, humane image and a sympathy wave for her party. She is the only politician to move around even in the militancy-infested villages of south Kashmir.
Mehbooba is contesting the assembly election from her 'well-consoled' Pahalgam constituency, adjacent to her hometown Bijbehara. The anti-incumbency factor, with the outgoing legislator of the National Conference facing allegations of corruption and neglect, is also working to her advantage.
Yet, she faces a strong challenge from the National Conference's new candidate, Rafi Mir, a local with a gentlemanly, Mr Clean image. Mir, who was elected from Pahalgam in 1987, belongs to an illustrious family of the region and has considerable clout in the constituency, which was a stronghold of the National Conference in the pre-militancy days.
"People are not happy with the performance of the sitting NC MLA," Mir admits. "In various villages they talk about his non-performance. But they know and trust me. The opposition has its pockets of influence and we have our own. It is a tough fight. I would say it is neck-and-neck."
The popular response is on similar lines. Voters appear to be divided between the two contestants. There is no clear trend in favour of one or the other. While Mir mustered a 2,000-strong gathering at Seer Hamdan, one of the biggest villages in Pahalgam, Mehbooba drew an equally big crowd at Aishmuqam, another big village in the constituency.
"The earlier NC legislator only filled his pockets and did not even show his face all these years," says Ghulam Qadir, a baker in Aishmuqam. "So why should we vote NC? Instead, Mehboobaji has been visiting this place regularly and we will vote for her."
But in the Pahalgam main market, which used to be full of foreign and domestic tourists in the pre-militancy days, Shouket Khan, who would take tourists for a horse ride, remembers Mir's days as a legislator. "When Mir Sahib was the MLA, he did not forget us. He was concerned even about a poor man like me. Here the majority will vote for the NC."
Yet, Mir faces opposition from within his own party as well. The outgoing legislator, Abdul Kabir Bhat, is apparently trying to scuttle his chances. "He does have his pockets of influence," says Mir. "It is unfortunate that my own party man is working against me."
Campaigning in the district ended on Sunday evening. The political fate of both Mir and Mehbooba now hangs in the balance. Who will take the road to the legislature is a question that Pahalgam will answer on Tuesday, when it goes to the polls in the third phase of the assembly election.
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