J&K Panchayat Conference merges with Apni Party

Mir was earlier associated with the Congress, however, he had parted ways from the party and also met top leaders of the Union government after he formed the panchayat conference.

Shafiq Mir, president of Jammu and Kashmir Panchayat Conference—an apex body of panchayats—along with the members of his association on Thursday joined Apni Party.

Mir was earlier associated with the Congress, however, he had parted ways from the party and also met top leaders of the Union government after he formed the panchayat conference.

While announcing the merger of All Jammu and Kashmir Panchayat Conference with Apni Party, Shafiq Mir said that the unique socio-economic and political agenda and the vision of its leadership distinguish Apni Party from the rest of regional political parties.

“Apni Party is the only party capable of addressing the challenges faced by the people of Jammu and Kashmir in the prevailing political circumstances,” he said adding that the regional political parties in the Union territory have been doing emotive politics for decades and have never allowed the strengthening of the grassroots level democracy for their narrow political considerations.

“Those political parties that were so far averse to the idea of holding panchayat elections in J&K during its first and second tiers have now realised that they will be rendered irrelevant if they don’t participate in the elections to the third tier of Panchayat Raj. So they have jumped into the fray,” Mir said.

Altaf Bukhari president of Apni Party said with the joining of a leader who has worked very hard for the mitigation of public grievances through the forum of Panchayat Raj is a good omen for the party.

He said that Apni Party has believed in peoples’ empowerment and this political goal can be archived only by strengthening the Panchayat Raj institutions.