Srinagar, Apr 8 : A day after she was named as the party candidate from Anantnag- Rajouri Lok Sabha seat Peoples Democratic Party Chief Mehbooba Mufti on Monday said the Centre wants to keep her out of the Parliament.

Talking to reporters after visiting the grave of her father and party founder Mufti Mohammad Sayeed in Bijbehara Anantnag, she said PDP has been the biggest target after 2019- when J&K’s special status was scrapped.

“After 2019 if any party has been targeted that is PDP. The party was broken and our leaders were lured and some were blackmailed to quit the party. I tried to raise my voice against the suppression since 2019, and my family members faced the brunt. But I stood my ground. That is why they think that if my voice reaches the Parliament, they might face problems in the Parliament,” Mufti said without naming anyone.

The PDP chief added the real situation in Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh will come to light and their beating drum of normalcy here will get exposed.

“That is why they want to make every effort to keep me out of the Parliament, “she added.

She, however, said that the people are her hope.

“The people either living in south Kashmir or from the Pir Panchal where barely I have left any village and area during all these years to hear the aspirations of the people when they were in trouble during the militancy period,” she said.

“I made efforts on my behalf even as I am not a strong human to raise my voice against the suppression of the people. I think the people of Jammu and Kashmir and the people of Anantnag and those living Rajouri will admire my words and give strength to my voice to vote me to the Parliament”, she said.

Asked that former Union Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad is also fighting from the Anantnag-Rajouri seat, how would be the competition, Mufti said that “in democracy, anybody can compete with anybody. You can not stop anyone”.

Referring to an incident of alleged molestation of a tribal girl and beating of her family in the Janipur area of Jammu division, Mufti said that police even did not file an FIR rather police were issuing a counter FIR against them.

UNI