SRINAGAR, May 4: Apni Party President Altaf Bukhari on Saturday said traditional parties deliberately subjected the residents of Srinagar city to unnecessary sufferings, solely for their personal political advantages.
He said these leaders exploited the innocence of the city dwellers by keeping them engaged in disputes like Sher-Bakra ( “Sher” signified supporter of National Conference and “Bakra” were the supporters of Mirwaiz family led Awami Action Committee) and India-Pakistan, and so on.
“Their aim was to keep the pot boiling and ensure their political dividends out of the turmoil,” Bukhari said while addressing a party convention in the Habba Kadal area of Srinagar's old city in support of party's Lok Sabha poll candidate Mohammad Ashraf Mir.
Bukhari said most of the population in old Srinagar lives in under difficult circumstances, lacking adequate housing, financial resources, and job opportunities.
“It pains me to see that most of the population in downtown Srinagar endures challenging conditions marked by inadequate housing, financial constraints, and a lack of employment opportunities. I know that they have been pushed into this situation over the years and decades by the traditional political parties and their leaders, who kept the people of the city busy with conflicts like Sher-Bakra, India-Pakistan, and so on, only to gain their own political advantages out of these conflicts,” he said.
Later talking to reporters Bukhari said the ongoing Lok Sabha elections should not be equated with a referendum, as is suggested by the some political parties.
” These politicians are again deceiving the people of Jammu and Kashmir and leading them towards death and destruction,” Bukhari said.
Meanwhile, socio-political activist Waqar H. Bhatti, along with his wife Roohi Bhatti, joined Apni Party in Srinagar, a spokesman of the party said. (Agencies)
