Editor's Pick: J&K's political mainstream puts up a fight

(The Editor's Pick is a new newsletter from The Hindu that provides a snapshot of the most important stories from today's edition of our newspaper, along with a note from our top editors on why we chose to give prominence to these stories.)

In his interview to The Hindu, National Conference president Farooq Abdullah did not rule out the possibility of the six-party alliance that has taken shape in Jammu and Kashmir turning into an electoral alliance. The alliance sprung from the Gupkar Declaration of August 4, 2019 that brought together traditional political rivals like the NC and the PDP with 4 other parties. The new alliance aims to fight for the return of J&K's statehood and Special Status under Article 370 of the Constitution, which was hollowed out a day after the Gupkar Declaration.

As The Hindu's Editorial today says, the new alliance marks the return of political activity in Jammu and Kashmir after a year of political detentions -- some of which, like that of PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti, continue. These detentions were statedly for security reasons but had the effect of curbing mainstream political activity in J&K. The alliance will be a test of the Centre government's thesis that the mainstream parties in J&K do not have any popular support. The Hindu's editorial argues that these parties have deep social roots and they helped weld the region to India. Attempts were made in the last year by the Centre to create alternatives to the political mainstream in J&K. If the mainstream parties are back in the the electoral fray, they will go up against these 'alternatives' but more importantly, against the notion of their own irrelevance. This is what gives the story its importance.

(The Editor's Pick newsletter will return tomorrow.)