It has been a long and eventful journey for Sajad Lone, latest blue-eyed boy of New Delhi in Kashmir valley. Son of Hurriyat leader and co-founder Abdul Gani Lone embraced separatist politics of Kashmir soon after his father was shot dead. Abdul Gani Lone started his career with mainstream politics but soon gave it up to join separatist voices and became founder member of Hurriyat Conference. Lone’s youngest son, educated in UK, Sajad Lone says he had no choice but to join the separatist camp because he was only following the footsteps of his father and older brother. However he was soon disillusioned and started questioning the choices Hurriyat was making.                                                                                                               

 Soon after he split from his brother and was now running one faction of People’s Conference, that is father had founded. ‘I am not my father, that was 2002 and this is 2018” announces Sajad Lone in the interviews that he has given  to Indian Express and Economic Times after successfully making the heft of his political party felt after he managed to get his candidate, Junaid Mattu elected as the Mayor of Srinagar. This is People’s Conference’s first foray into politics outside of North Kashmir.

After PDP- BJP alliance fizzled away and Mehbooba resigned as Chief Minister, there have been strong rumors that Sajad may be propped as Chief Minister with the support of BJP and disgruntled MLA’s from PDP. While Sajad himself remains tight lipped about it, he calls his party  an ally of BJP and refuses to ostracize it. He talks about working with ‘Indian Government’ and is full of praise for Narendra Modi. His wrath is however reserved for National Conference and PDP.  He calls both parties dynastic parties that have ruined J&K and have blocked any outsider’s entry into mainstream politics because it will render some people ‘jobless’.

In a rare unguarded moment, Sajad Lone narrates days after his father was shot dead and how he was not given any adequate security even when he was under threat. He fondly remembers Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s regime in Center that finally intervened and gave him adequate security because of which he feels he is alive today.

If Sajad Lone is able to create a successful third front in Jammu and Kashmir then many blunders of Modi’s government with respect to Kashmir valley may fade from popular imagination.

You can read Sajad Lone’s detailed interviews here and here.