J&K: Ex-IAS Officer Shah Faesal’s Party To Not Contest Lok Sabha Polls As Focus Will Be On Building ‘Mass Connect’ 

Former Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer Shah Faesal, who recently launched a political party, Jammu and Kashmir People’s Movement (JKPM), has said that the party will not fight the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. However, he urged people of the state to elect “right candidates”, reports The Indian Express.

“We have had several meetings of the core group of our party over the past few days and we have decided that we will not contest the Lok Sabha elections this time,” Faesal was quoted in the report as saying to reporters on Saturday (23 March) in Srinagar.

He cited focus on the mass contact programme as one of the reasons for not contesting polls.

“The unanimous view was that we are a party still in infancy and that we should also focus on mass contact programmes. This was also our response to those elements who were accusing us of being stooges of the Centre for dividing votes in the current elections,” he said.

Regarding the question of which party or candidates the JKPM cadres would support, he said it will be communicated in due course of time.

“Whether there is boycott or not, elections will be held and people will be elected to Parliament. So, people should take part in the democratic process so that the right candidates are elected,” he added.