THE president of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Mehbooba Mufti Sayeed, deserves sympathy in her bereavement, on the death of her father chief minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed.

He owed his office to her exertions over a decade ago. Mufti had a poor reputation in Indian Kashmir.

The PDP was set up with the centre’s backing. In 2002, it formed a coalition with the Congress. Mufti became chief minister at the head of a liberal regime promising “a healing touch”.

The PDP-BJP coalition submitted to the BJP’s demands.

In 2008, Mehbooba withdrew support and the government fell. Omar Abdullah’s tenure as chief minister was marked by arrogance and incompetence. He headed a coalition with the Congress. The 2014 elections returned a communally, regionally divided mandate — PDP 28, BJP 25, National Conference 15, Congress 12 and three independents in an assembly of 87. The CPM, the PDF, Congress and Sheikh Abdur Rashid declared their support for the PDP to keep the BJP out.

This added up to 43. One short of an absolute majority, it yielded a workable minority government.

The former RAW chief A.S. Dulat revealed that Mufti was in touch with the BJP to forge a coalition even before the poll results were out. It took two months for him to draw up an ‘agenda of an alliance’. It was kept secret till Mufti assumed office in March 2015 for good reason.

It reflected Mufti’s betrayal of Kashmir’s aspirations. It directly contradicted the PDP’s manifesto pompously called ‘an aspirational agenda’.

In the 10 months it has been in office the PDP-BJP coalition submitted to the BJP’s demands — revocation of an order on the display of the Indian Kashmir flag which is recognised by its constitution; boycott by BJP ministers to participate in the July 13 Martyrs’ Day function to pay homage to the 21 Kashmiris killed by the forces of the Dogra ruler in 1931.

This exposed the deep rift. The BJP leader Ravinder Rana said, “July 13 was a black day in Kashmir’s history when some goons revolted against the rule of Maharaja Hari Singh.” Muslims in the Valley loathe him; BJP men in Jammu adore him.

In September, a division bench of the high court at Jammu comprising justices Dhiraj Singh Thakur and Janak Raj Kotwal ordered the police to enforce a law from the ruler’s time banning cow slaughter. Another bench issued notice to the government to show cause why the law should not be struck down.

A bill to repeal the law was deftly sidetracked by the PDP and NC and by the speaker who is a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh man. The Supreme Court requested the chief justice of the high court to constitute a larger bench.

In December came a historic ruling by Justice Hasnain Mir of the high court mandating display of the flag, questioning an amendment of the Kashmir constitution in 1965, which replaced the Sadr-i-Riyasat with the governor, and declaring that Article 370 of India’s constitution, which supposedly guarantees Kashmir’s autonomy, cannot be abrogated. A larger bench stayed his order.

But the pass was sold by Mufti himself. His manifesto envisaged use of Article 370 “to restore” the original special status. The alliance document treats Article 370 as a dirty word and says “the present position will be maintained”; the husk of Article 370 is a result of 47 orders under it to destroy Kashmir’s special status.

Mehbooba herself was privy to the deal. The PDP’s support base shrank. The money which it expected from the centre was not forthcoming. Modi snubbed Mufti at a public rally in Sri­nagar in November when he urged Indo-Pak talks. He did not call on the ailing chief minister in New Delhi nor visited Kashmir after his death. Sonia Gandhi did both.

In mourning, Mehbooba refused to be sworn in on Jan 7. Governor’s rule was imposed. The BJP said that it was for the PDP to make the call. A PDP minister Naeem Akhtar said: “The agenda of the alliance has not been followed.” A belated discovery by this enthusiast. “What about returning power projects and smart cities?”

He gave himself away when he said, “The two parties had agreed to address non-controversial issues jointly” — return of power projects and the like — “but we need to assess the progress on these fronts.” He does not realise that his people have a soul. They aspire for self-rule on which the PDP betrayed them — as had the NC and the Congress. The PDP sought a sop, using an alliance with the Congress as a threat. The BJP refused to give any.

Recently, the PDP authorised Mehbooba “to take the final call on government formation”. Significantly, Naeem Akhtar called the alliance document sacred.

The writer is an author and a lawyer based in Mumbai.

Published in Dawn, January 23rd, 2016