Iltija Mufti, daughter of PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti, is going to make her electoral debut in the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections. Iltija will contest from Bijbehara, a traditional family stronghold in Anantnag district of South Kashmir. Iltija, who plays an active role in the political activities of the PDP, is working as the media advisor to the party chief.
According to PDP sources, Mehbooba Mufti is now taking initiatives to hand over her political legacy to her daughter. It is being said that Mehbooba will now play the role of a mentor and this time she will herself stay away from contesting the assembly elections. In such a situation, when Iltija Mufti, who can be the leader of PDP in future, knows some special things related to her life.
Iltija Mufti (37), daughter of former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, will contest the assembly elections from Bijbehara in South Kashmir. This was announced on Monday. Iltija Mufti’s name is also included in the list of 8 candidates released by the party for the upcoming elections. Bijbehara is considered the traditional stronghold of the Mufti family.
Talking about Iltija Mufti, she has done graduation in political science from Delhi University and master’s degree in international relations from University of Warwick, United Kingdom. Iltija first came into the limelight when she was appointed media advisor during the detention of Mehbooba Mufti after the repeal of Article 370. In August 2019, when communication was banned in entire Kashmir, Iltija wrote a bold letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah asking why she was kept under house arrest in her Srinagar residence.
Iltija was allowed to travel out of the Valley, where she approached the Supreme Court for permission to meet her mother, which she eventually got. After Mehbooba Mufti’s release, Iltija was seen accompanying her in her media interactions and meetings. In June 2022, Iltija started a fortnightly video dialogue series called “Aapki Baat Iltija Ke Sath” on the social media platform X, in which she talks about issues and decisions affecting the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
Iltija, the elder of two sisters, was raised by her mother Mufti alone as her father Javed Iqbal Shah, a businessman and sometime National Conference leader, had separated from the family. Iltija’s younger sister is a public relations professional in Srinagar. In 2023, Iltija struggled with the authorities over the renewal of her passport. Her passport had expired on January 2, and she applied to obtain a new passport on June 8, 2022.
However, the Regional Passport Office (RPO) in Srinagar did not issue her a new passport. Iltija then approached the Jammu and Kashmir High Court in February 2023 seeking a direction to the RPO to renew her passport. She also wrote to the police administration to complete the verification process. Eventually, the RPO issued her a passport in April 2023, despite the adverse verification report from the CID, which was classified as “top secret”. Iltija Mufti’s political journey has now taken a new turn, and all eyes are on her upcoming electoral debut.
Source (PTI) (NDTV) (HINDUSTANTIMES)