Jammu, Mar 20: Several political activists belonging to various parties and two Congress leaders on Friday joined the newly formed JKAP.
A party spokesperson said the general secretary of the Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress, Namrita Sharma; and the president of the JK unit of the National Students Union of India (NSUI), Raqeeq Ahmad Khan, joined the JKAP in the presence of party president Syed Mohammad Alatf Bukhari.
The spokesperson said in a statement that 41 other senior political activists from the Congress, BJP and the PDP also joined the Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party, floated by businessmen-turned-politician Bukhari on March 8 in Srinagar.
Bukhari had met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah on March 14 and 15, respectively.
This was the first visit of Bukhari, a former state finance minister, to Jammu after forming the outfit along with 30 political leaders from various state and national parties.
Bukhari welcomed the new entrants, saying their inclusion will strengthen the party apparatus in Jammu and Kashmir.
“I hope and believe that Sharma and Khan will work together for the uplift of people. The JKAP believes in mitigating the sufferings of people in all possible ways and manner,” Bukhari said.
The party, however, announced the suspension of political activities in the union territory till March 31 in the wake of the guidelines issued by the health authorities to fight the novel Coronavirus outbreak in the union territory till March 31.
“In view of a positive COVID-19 case in Kashmir, all JKAP meetings are hereby suspended,” the party spokesperson said.
He said, “Colleagues and workers are requested not to hold any outreach activity for the time being. Party’s Sheikh Bagh office (Srinagar) will be only open for urgent work.”
“The party activities shall be resumed in accordance with new guidelines as and when issued by the health authorities,” he added.
Bukhari requested the party activists to lend help to the administration in spreading awareness about proper sanitation and social-distancing guidelines.