Jammu: A renowned Pahari singer from a border village in Kashmir joined the BJP on Thursday, saying the party has fulfilled its promises, including granting Scheduled Tribe status to his community.
Tariq Pardesi, a resident of Karnah sector in north Kashmir’s Kupwara district, was welcomed into the party fold by the BJP’s Jammu and Kashmir chief Ravinder Raina in presence of former MP Talib Hussain and senior leader Mohammad Iqbal Malik.
“The new entrant belongs to the remote border area whose residents are nationalists to the core. They have strengthened the BJP by joining the party in large numbers,” Raina told reporters.
Praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his efforts in the progress of the nation in all sectors, Raina said he provided justice to the deprived communities, including the Paharis.
Pardesi lauded the BJP leadership for fulfilling all the demands of his community and said, “All the Pahari people are indebted to the party and will support it with full might in the elections.”
Malik said Pardesi is a well-known face in the Rajouri and the Poonch belts and other adjoining areas of the Jammu region as well as in the Pahari belt of Kashmir and his joining is a big boost for the party.
