BJP’s Shagun Parihar, whose father was killed in terror attack, wins in Kishtwar

BJP leader Shagun Parihar, whose father and uncle were killed by terrorists in 2018, secured a narrow win in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar Assembly seat with a margin of 521 votes.
According to the Election Commission website, Shagun Parhar garnered 29,053 votes in the Muslim-dominated seat and defeated the National Conference’s two-time MLA, Sajjad Ahmad Kichloo, who bagged 28,532 votes.
The BJP’s decision to field Shagun Parihar as their candidate is a calculated move to win over the district’s diverse religious communities.
By selecting Shagun Parihar, who can appeal to both the region’s large Muslim community and its smaller Hindu population, the party aims to gain a foothold in an area marred by terrorism in the past. Shagun Parihar’s father, Ajit Parihar, and uncle, Anil Parihar, who was a district BJP leader, were killed in a terror attack in November 2018.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his first campaign rally in J&K’s Doda district on September 14, referred to her tragic background while labelling her as a “living example of the BJP’s resolve to end terrorism” in the Union Territory.
“Our daughter’s (BJP’s Doda candidate) Shagun Parihar’s father and uncle were killed by terrorists. We have fielded her here. She is not just our candidate, she is the living example of the BJP’s resolve to finish off terrorism,” PM Modi said.
Meanwhile, the Congress-National Conference alliance won 47 seats and was ahead on one.
For the first time since the abrogation of Article 370, Jammu and Kashmir held elections to the 90-member Assembly. The BJP secured 27 seats and was ahead on two. Mehbooba Mufti’s Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) bagged three seats. The AAP surprisingly opened its account in the Union Territory, with Mehraj Malik winning in Doda.