Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to launch BJP’s Mission 44 plus from historic parade ground in Kishtwar popularly known as ‘Chowgan’ on Saturday.
During the maiden rally of the 2014 Assembly polls Modi is expected to turn tables on the sitting National Conference legislator Sajjad Ahmad Kitchloo while seeking votes for party nominee Sunil Sharma.
Aggressive campaign by Prime Minister Modi in support of the BJP candidates in the region is expected to impact the poll matrix and improve chances of the BJP candidates to strike gold in the region.
The BJP had never won any Assembly segment in the erstwhile Doda district barring Ramban seat in 1996.
In 2008, Sharma gave a tough fight to Kitchloo but lost by a narrow margin of less than 3,000 votes. Sharma is keeping the party flag high despite facing threats from militant commanders. He is known to have given shelter and protected minorities in the region during peak militancy.
Sajjad, aiming for a hat-trick from his home constituency, is on a sticky wicket and may find the going tough after the BJP’s show of strength in the hilly district.
For the past several days, the grassroots level workers of the BJP along with senior party leaders have been camping in the area to gather support for the BJP candidate and to make the rally a grand success.
The BJP supporters from neighbouring Assembly segments are also expected to attend the Kishtwar rally in large numbers.
Unrest is brewing in the area against the sitting legislator as he ignored development of the region despite remaining in office.
Modi is expected to strike an emotional chord with the local residents as they have been neglected by the successive Governments in the State and at the Centre by selling the dream of good governance.
Sajjad’s tenure as NC legislator is full of controversies. Instead of focusing his energies on developmental works he was embroiled in controversies.
He earlier won the seat in 2002 as well. His father Bashir Ahmad Kitchloo also won the seat on three occasions in 1977, 1987 and 1996.
Kitchloo’s image of a soft spoken legislator took a severe beating when he allegedly slapped a Kashmir administrative officer ahead of the start of a meeting in local dak bunglow on April 18, 2013. The officer dragged him to the court of law and even Chief Minister Omar Abdullah directed him to mend fences and seek an apology from the KAS officer as pressure mounted on him after registration of an FIR in the case.
Kitchloo later came under the scanner during Kishtwar riots of August 2013.
He had to tender his resignation from the Council of Ministers pending an enquiry. He was later reinducted by Omar after receiving a preliminary enquiry report which cleared his name. The final report of Kishtwar riots is yet to be submitted by the Retd Justice RS Gandhi Commission.
More recently, Kitchloo faced another embarrassment after the State High Court slammed State Government’s decision to transfer Director of Industries and Commerce within three months of his appointment. The Director, Industries and Commerce had taken a lid off the land allotment scandal involving crores of rupees.The transfer of the officer was purportedly done at the behest of Sajjad Ahmad Kitchloo.