The Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu Kashmir, despite being banned, is set to field its former members as Independent candidates in the upcoming Assembly elections, Indian Express reported.
The decision came one day after the Indian government’s special UAPA tribunal upheld the ban on the organisation.
As per the Indian express report, in the initial phase, Jamaat e Islami plans to target about six seats in south Kashmir, including Kulgam, Devsar, Bijbehara, Zainapora, Tral, Pulwama, and Rajpora.
Sources, quoted by the newspaper, from within the outfit revealed, “We had a threadbare discussion on three options. The first was to form a front and fight under its banner; the second option was to be part of an alliance; and the third was to contest as Independents.”
After ruling out forming an alliance and recognizing the time constraints in registering a front, the group opted to contest as Independents.
The Jamaat has been absent from electoral politics since 1987, but sources indicated that the organization is eager to re-enter the political arena.
“We are called a terror organization, anti-democracy. We can’t contest elections as Jamaat members but we want to show that we believe in democracy, in the Constitution,” a source explained.
While the final list of candidates is still being prepared, the group is aware of potential challenges.
“We don’t know how the state will react – whether they will accept the nomination or not,” the source added.
The organization plans to announce the list of candidates by Sunday.