J-K Assembly Polls: Nomination of jailed Kashmiri cleric Sarjan Barkati rejected over ‘criminal antecedents’

The nomination form of jailed Kashmiri cleric, Sarjan Ahmad Wagay for the upcoming assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir has been rejected. 

Wagay, popularly known as Sarjan Barkati, had filed papers from the Zainpora Assembly constituency in the Shopian district where the voting is scheduled to take place in the first phase on September 18. His nomination has been rejected because of ‘criminal antecedents.’

Barkati was a prominent face during the protest rallies in the South Kashmir districts of Shopian and Kulgam after the killing of Burhan Wani in 2016.

Killed in an encounter on July 8, 2016, Wani was the top district commander of Hizbul Mujahideen and became a poster boy of the militancy in Kashmir. His killing had led to widespread protests in Kashmir valley leading to the death of about 90 people.

Barkati was arrested in October 2016 and was released four years later. He was arrested again in August 2023, in connection with a terror-funding case. Later, his wife was arrested too.

Barkati's daughter, Sugra Barkati, filed the nomination papers on behalf of her father on Monday.

Jammu and Kashmir is voting for its 90-member assembly in three phases. While the first phase of voting in Jammu and Kashmir is scheduled for September 18, the other two rounds will be held on September 25 and October 1. The votes will be counted on October 4.

As many as 279 candidates have filed their nomination papers across 24 assembly segments of seven districts, which are going to polls in the first phase on September 18. Of the 24 seats voting in the first phase, 16 are in the Valley and 8 in the Jammu region.

Barkati's attempt at electoral politics came months after Engineer Rashid, jailed under UAPA, defeated former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and Peoples Conference president Sajad Lone from the Baramulla seat.

Apart from Barkati, many former members of the banned Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu and Kashmir have also filed nomination papers to contest the Assembly polls in the Union Territory as independent candidates.

While Jamaat cannot participate in the elections due to the ban imposed by the Union Home Ministry, it had shown interest in participating in the polls during the Lok Sabha elections if the ban was removed.

Jamaat did not participate in any elections after 1987 and was part of the separatist amalgam Hurriyat Conference, which advocated for poll boycotts from 1993 to 2003.