Mufti’s son rise in Kashmir politics: Dynasty is destiny?

Tasaduq would be the third member of Mufti family to join politics after his father and sister. Tasaduq and Mehbooba’s maternal uncle Sartaj Madni is a politician too.

While hereditary politics are common in Kashmir like to most south Asian countries, Tasaduq was happy being a cinematographer before his father’s death. The demise of Mufti, however, changed that for the family and Tasaduq, 44.

During Mufti’s political career span over five decades, the family was more or less insulated from politics. Until last week, the first and the only family member to plunge into politics was Mufti’s second daughter, Mehbooba.

Mehbooba (55), a mother of two girls, spent most of her time with herfather after her divorce. When Mufti served as the Union Home Minister he was an unpopular political leader in Kashmir, seen as New Delhi’s man in Kashmir. The turnaround for Mufti, many believe, came because of his daughter who struggled hard to make her father and his newly-found party acceptable to the people of Kashmir.

Mehbooba’s politics of soft separatism helped the PDP to secure power in just three years of its existence. Many PDP leaders believe that Mehbooba is the “soul” of her party and that’s why she has been accepted as the undisputed leader and undisputed candidate for the post of chief minister.

Though Mehbooba has had a successful journey into politics, her two sisters have shied away from them: her younger sister is Rubaya Sayeed, Mufti’s daughter who was kidnapped by militants in 1990 when Mufti was Union Home Minister, and was released in exchange for militants. The older sister, Mehmooda is settled in US while Rubaya is married and settled outside Kashmir.

Tasaduq, the youngest of the siblings, had followed their lead and stayed away from politics before Mufti’s death. He is now seen as PDP’s likely candidate for the Anantnag parliamentary constituency that will fall vacant after Mehbooba takes oath as chief minister of the state.