Ex-Minister Zulfikar Ali joins BJP ahead of Assembly polls in J&K

A prominent Gujjar leader and vice-president of the Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party Choudhary Zulfikar Ali joined the BJP at Jammu.

Zulfikar, a former minister in the previous PDP-BJP government, had met Union Minister Amit Shah in Delhi on Saturday before joining the BJP.

He joined the BJP in the presence of Union Minister G. Kishen Reddy, BJP national general secretary Tarun Chugh, and J&K BJP president Ravinder Raina.

On his decision to join the BJP, former PDP leader Chaudhary Zulfikar Ali says, "The policies and schemes of the BJP have reached even the last person in the queue. These things compelled me to join the BJP. Every person received the 'sehat card' which the people of my area referred to as the 'Modi card'. Peace has been restored in J&K, stone pelting has ended, the common man feels more secure, and the tourism industry has grown. We will form our government. What has Omar Abdullah done for J&K? They have been giving only slogans after ruling for 70 years".

Choudhary Zulfikar said that he has decided to join the BJP due to the visionary and pro-people policies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Choudhary Zulfikar has been part of several political parties, including the National Conference, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and the J&K Apni Party. He has held important roles like Cabinet Minister for Food Civil Supplies, Consumer Affairs, and Tribal Affairs during the PDP-BJP regime.

He also helped start Altaf Bukhari's Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party (JKAP) and was its Vice President.

Zulfikar, a well-known Gujjar leader from Rajouri, is influential in the Pir Panjal region. His decision to join the BJP is expected to boost the party's influence there.

BJP to fight J&K Assembly elections alone

Jammu and Kashmir BJP unit chief President Ravinder Raina said on Sunday that the party will not form any alliance with other political parties for the Assembly elections in the Union Territory, which are scheduled for the third week of September.

He mentioned that the BJP might team up with some independent candidates for 8-10 assembly seats in the Kashmir region. He emphasized, "We will not form any alliance with any political party."

Raina stated that the BJP will contest the elections with full strength and expects the public of Jammu and Kashmir to vote overwhelmingly for them, allowing the BJP to form the government.

He reiterated that the BJP will contest the elections on its own in Jammu and Kashmir but might ally with some independent candidates.