Srinagar: The former mayor of Srinagar and a leader of the Apni Party Junaid Azim Mattu resigned from the party.
The development is another setback for the Altaf Bukhari-led Apni Party ahead of Assembly polls. In the last month, several senior party leaders—Usman Majid, Noor Mohammad, Choudhary Zulfikar, and Abdul Rahim—quitted the party.
In July, after the Lok Sabha elections in which the Apni Party received a massive drubbing with both of its candidates forfeiting their deposits, Mattu declared a temporary withdrawal from politics.
In a long post on X late Tuesday, Mattu announced his resignation.
“It is with a heavy heart and with all humility at my command that I announce my decision to part ways with the J&K Apni Party,” Mattu said.
The former mayor extended his gratitude to party President Altaf Bukhari and his colleagues and wished them well.
“During my Hajj pilgrimage earlier this year, I had taken a solemn pledge to uphold my conviction and do politics guided by my own principles and a sense of discerning the right from the wrong. Primarily underscored by this solemn pledge and based also on extensive consultations with my workers and supporters over the last five days, I have reached this decision,” he added.
“One cannot and should not criticise what one has been a part of—ffor good or for bad. My best wishes are with Altaf Sahab, an elder brother who has been nothing but kind, protective, and large-hearted,” Mattu posted on X.
“However, my own convictions are no longer congruent or symmetrical with the ideology of the party, and in this situation, to still remain associated with the party or to contest elections as a party candidate would be outrightly disingenuous. My party is now at a complete liberty to field an appropriate candidate from Zadibal in my place,” he added.
Mattu said he will address the media in a couple of days to share his views, answer questions, and perhaps outline his intentions and goals going forward.
“Whatever I decide, my efforts will be aligned towards a life guided by my faith and an unadulterated conviction—aas unpalatable or as inexpedient as it may be in the short term. And I have realised in the last few days, as I have been persecuted systematically for speaking my heart out, that speaking truth to power is not easy—bbut regardless of the consequences—iit is the truth, and it definitely needs to be spoken,” the former mayor said.
“To my beloved and loyal workers and team—iit is going to be tougher to remain by my side. We are going to face unimaginable challenges for speaking the truth and going against the grain of power. But I assure you—eevery single moment of my life going forward (in whatever capacity Allah ﷻ has written for me) will be a moment treated as a sacred duty to speak the truth and nothing but the truth,” he said.
Mattu, a graduate in business and finance from Michigan State University, has served as the mayor of Srinagar for nearly five years from 2018. He also dabbled with separatist politics and later joined the mainstream. He formerly remained associated with the National Conference and Peoples Conference.
