Political analysts confess to being baffled by Farooq's support to a party which has been consistently opposing the state's special status while the NC has been pleading for more autonomy. "It's either naivete or mere political opportunism," says a senior party leaders here.
There seem to be no takers for Farooq's logic for extending support to the BJP government for seeking maximum economic support for the state government. In 1987, Farooq had piloted the same theory when he entered into an accord with Rajiv Gandhi. Then he had announced that he was going to get Rs 1,000 crore in special assistance from the Rajiv government. In the event, not a penny came and all allocations were in accordance with the norms laid down by the Planning Commission. The upshot: other parties like the Muslim United Front made major electoral gains at the expense of the NC.
A scenario that Farooq faces once again. In these Lok Sabha he has virtually lost his constituency. Despite the Hurriyat Conference boycotting the polls, the NC failed to establish itself as the main party and the Congress has emerged as force to reckon with. It not only defeated the NC in the Anantnag constituency but also out up a tough fight in Baramulla, where the party covertly supported an independent candidate. And in Srinagar, from where chief minister fielded his son Umer, it is alleged that things could have been tighter if the elections had been "free and fair".
Indeed, many NC activists see Umer's entry into politics as a reason for Farooq's stance vis-a-vis the BJP. Says one of them: "He has bartered away the soul of the NC for earning a ministerial berth for his son."
Meanwhile, the other NC member in Lok Sabha, Saifuddin Soz, has fallen in line with Farooq's stand, albeit extremely grudgingly. And after paying the price for criticism: he has been removed as party spokesperson by Ghulam Moh-iuddin Shah.
The other casualty of the ensuing deterioration in Congress-National Conference ties is bound to be the lone Congress minister in the Farooq cabinet, who had made a history of sorts by joining the National Conference government even though his party preferred to sit in the Opposition.
