Farooq Khan, the former adviser to Jammu and Kashmir lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha, said on Monday that he belonged to BJP since the very beginning and will share information at the “right time” if he contests the assembly elections.
Khan, 67, a retired IPS officer who was instrumental in breaking the backbone of terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir in the early 1990s, submitted his resignation on Sunday evening to the ministry of home affairs and said he is hopeful that it will be accepted. He had earlier served as a national secretary of the BJP and held various posts in the party’s minority cell.
It is being speculated that Khan is likely to be assigned the responsibility of preparing the Saffron Party for the first assembly elections in the UT. Being a Muslim, who is equally accepted by people of all faiths in both Jammu and Kashmir, Khan’s return to the BJP will definitely bolster the party’s presence in the UT.
“I have submitted my resignation and there is no political assignment till now. I have just put in papers requesting them (MHA) that I will like to work in the political field,” said Khan.
When asked whether he will contest the elections, he said, “It is too early for me to say anything. As of now, I haven’t joined any party, but I certainly belonged to BJP since the beginning. To say that I will contest or make someone else contest will be premature for me. I will share everything at the right time.”
While the delimitation commission has been given another extension till May 6 to complete the exercise of redrawing the assembly and Lok Sabha constituencies in J&K, the election commission is likely to announce the assembly polls sometime between October and December.
