New alliance in the Valley: Sajad Lone, Jamaat faction and Hakim Yasin join hands to offer J&K ‘alternative'
The alliance has been named the People's Alliance for Change (PAC). Lone made the announcement on Monday at a press conference and was accompanied by Yasin and Shamim Ahmad Thoker, the founding president of Justice and Development Front (JDF), the political party floated by the Jamaat-e-Islami faction that fielded candidates in last year's Assembly polls.
'The people of Jammu and Kashmir have endured immense suffering and we are committed to driving change,' Lone said, adding that the alliance 'offered' a 'viable alternative' in a 'barren political landscape'.
We cannot succeed alone, Thoker said, adding that there must be unity to 'serve people effectively'.
Though the alliance partners have little presence on the ground, their partnership could upset the electoral balance in some seats. Lone's Handwara seat was the only seat his party won in the 2024 Assembly polls.
The Jamaat-backed candidates failed to win any seat despite contesting 10 seats as Independents. Yasin, who had earlier won the Khansahib Assembly seat twice as an Independent, lost to the National Conference (NC) in the 2024 polls.
Lone's Peoples Conference has pockets of influence, especially in the frontier district of Kupwara and Pattan in Baramulla. The Jamaat has a presence across the Kashmir Valley.
However, it is to be seen if the Jamaat cadres — and its sympathisers — rally behind the JDF. Many senior Jamaat leaders and its cadres see the JDF as a 'creation of intelligence agencies' in the Valley and have distanced themselves from the party.
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