By; Syed Adnan
Shiekh Abdul Rashid, aka Engineer Rashid, has finally been released on interim bail to campaign for ongoing assembly elections in Kashmir. His bail which has come at the time of elections, and not in the wake of his victory in the Lok Sabha elections from Baramulla constituency, has ruffled many features. While many have questioned the timing of the bail, others have questioned how and why Er Rashid, who is facing charges of terror under stringent UAPA, has been set free for campaigning when the bail for others booked under similar charges much earlier than him find it difficult to get.
This has only fuelled the rumour mill that called Rashid a “proxy of the BJP”. So much that even his anti-Modi, anti-Amit Shah rant—soon after his release from Tihar Jail—met with skepticism and suspicion, with social media users going as far as declaring that “his ranting was all scripted in Delhi to make him appear as anti-BJP”. However, truth remains hidden in the maze of words, and may eventually surface if and when Er Rashid and his party-men emerge victorious in the Assembly elections.
THE TIHAR PITCH
Just outside Tihar jail, when Rashid was released on September 11, media men posed to him some obvious questions. However, most of his answers revolved around what I call “The Tihar Pitch”—narrating stories of misery and alleged “maltreatment” meted to Kashmiri prisoners there. Rashid even went to the extent of naming a few prisoners including late Altaf Funtoosh, while calling Modi’s Naya Kashmir march a “farce that has failed in Kashmir.”
Much to the surprise of many, Rashid continue with stories from Tihar at a Live Facebook later that evening, enumerating how many separatist leaders had to face the ordeal of not attending the last rites of their deceased relatives. The Tihar and anti-Modi pitch was so high that even Ram Madhav responded to it, calling Rashid a “rank separatist.” However, even then, some social media users said it (Madhav’s response) was “BJP’s tacit way of helping its proxy to win votes on an emotional appeal in Kashmir.”
‘SAJIDA’ MOVE
As soon as Rashid landed in Kashmir the next morning, he got off his vehicle outside the Srinagar airport and, under full media glare, bowed down his forehead on ground to make a “Sajida” (prostration in Islam) and turned emotional.
Later, he went to Baramulla to attend a rally, which, according to many, was attended by a crowd of nearly 4000 people. At the rally too, Rashid continued with same Tihar pitch and anti-Modi ranting to send a signal that he wasn’t a BJP proxy, and that he was willing to join the INDIA Bloc “should it agree to fight for restoration of Article 370” which was abrogated by the Centre in 2019.
At the end of the day, Rashid’s pitches didn’t appear to have made much of an impact, as the AIP would have expected. So much so, even Abdullahs and Muftis didn’t react to either his final release from prison or his ranting against Modi and Amit Shah.
THE USUAL SUSPICION
There are multiple factors why Rashid’s pitch has fewer takers in Kashmir today, than was the case in the last Assembly elections. Perhaps his timing of release was one key factor, with many linking it to the rumor mill calling Rashid a BJP proxy. Add to this the fact that Rashid didn’t have anything concrete to offer for “peaceful resolution of Kashmir issue” which he said was his main poll plank. He didn’t have anything to offer on the unemployment front too. He remained silent on most of non-emotive issues, like bilji, paani and sadak concerns which would eventually form the bedrock of governance by the next Assembly.
Rashid kept mum on several critical matters including “unjust” termination of employees on flimsy grounds, repeal of Public Safety Act, addressing unemployment, among others. In all, he couldn’t move beyond The Tihar Pitch, which came in for severe criticism from many for “trying to woo voters on emotive issues” rather than a concrete roadmap on governance. Even few were unimpressed with what they called his “too much drama on social media—press conference after press conference with same old story of Tihar.”
QUESTIONS FOR BJP
Rashid’s alleged links with BJP, his anti-Modi ranting, his Tihar pitch and everything else that he stands for has all the potential to backfire for the Bharatiya Janta Party if it doesn’t disown him right away, and disown him lock, stock and barrel. It raises some fundamental questions. If Rashid is BJP’s candidate, is the party Okay with his anti-Modi ranting that causes public to vote for him? And what causes disaffection for the PM in public?
Should Rashid win the Assembly elections, and it comes to taking him on board for an alliance with BJP, will the saffron party be Okay with the fact that it will have an ally who has won on an anti-BJP sentiment vote? What message does it send to the larger public in Kashmir: that the BJP is Okay with having a terror-accused as its ally? That it doesn’t have any problem with charges against him as long as he is by its side? Then, what about those who are not serving even half of serious charges than Rashid? How would the party navigate through these questions?
Such questions have serious ability to prove counterproductive for the party in the long run. If Rashid wins, his vote will never be counted as the vote for democracy, howsoever BJP may try to beat this drum. Even Rashid himself said to media that the massive voting in his favour in the Baramulla LS polls was a “referendum against BJP’s decision to revoke Article 370 and 35 A”.
THE PROXY STORY
If the BJP doesn’t dump Rashid right away, it will only fuel suspicion of his being a BJP proxy which will neither benefit Rashid, nor the BJP—neither in short run nor in the long run. The BJP is in big loss here in both ways. It will not have a “democratic ideal” by its side should Rashid win. And should he lose, it will prove that all the BJP’s perceived support to him didn’t prove beneficial to it. It is better for the BJP to end this story here, and convince the general public that it had nothing to do with his bail, his release, or his ranting against Modi. It is a difficult task. But how the party’s advisors handle it is for them to decide. Sooner they do it, better it is for the party.
(NOTE: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of Kashmir Dot Com, its editorial staff, or its affiliates. KDC does not endorse or guarantee the accuracy of any claims made in this opinion piece.)
