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Journalism of Courage
Like Omar Abdullah, his core team is young and dynamic 8212; from a 34-year-old MBA to a 43-year-old engineer. At 32, Aga Roohullah is the National Conference8217;s youngest MLA. There is also a former MBBS student who dropped out in her final year to enter the political fray.
Nasir Sogami, 44
Sogami is not new to politics 8212; his grandfather, Ghulam Nabi Wai, was a member of the J038;K Constituent Assembly and a minister in Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah8217;s cabinet. Sogami joined the Youth National Conference when Omar became its president in 1998. After he completed his schooling from Presentation Convent, a missionary school in Srinagar, Sogami went on to do his B.Com. A political career was a logical choice, he says, adding that Omar will 8220;definitely give a good government to the state8221;.
Davender Singh Rana, 43
A former Paul Harris fellow at the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Rana joined politics six years ago. An engineer by profession, Rana was nominated by the NC to the Legislative Council about one-and-a-half years back. He has been Omar8217;s media advisor since 2002, and was in charge of the party8217;s media affairs during the Assembly polls. Omar will 8220;bring a new era of development, growth and prosperity,8221; says Rana. 8220;I have been working closely with him for years now. He is honest and forthright, a go-getter and a great team leader. He will be an able adminstrator,8221; he adds.
Javeed Dar, 34
An MBA graduate, Dar pulled off a surprise win, defeating two former cabinet ministers, Dilwar Mir and Abdul Gani Vakil, from North Kashmir8217;s Rafiabad constituency. Dar too hails from a family with a strong political background. Born in 1974, Dar completed his schooling from St Joseph8217;s Higher Secondary School, a prestigious missionary school in Baramulla. After his B.Com., he did his post-graduation in Business Administration from Pune University in 1999. While Dar began his political career with the People8217;s Democratic Party PDP, he later switched sides to the NC. 8220;Omar has a vision and enjoys credibility, and this is what J038;K needs the most today,8221; he says.
Sakeena Itoo, 38
Even as the PDP registered a near sweep across south Kashmir, Itoo managed to win the one-time militant hub of Noorabad, defeating PDP stalwart and former minister Abdul Aziz Zarger. Her father, Wali Mohamamd Itoo, was killed by militants in 1994. She was a final year student at a medical college in Bhopal at that time. While she was keen on completing her studies, she says it was her mother who forced her into politics. In the run-up to the 2002 polls, she survived four bids on her life.
Aga Roohullah, 32
The NC8217;s youngest legislator, Roohullah belongs to the Valley8217;s influential Shia family. In 2000, his father, Aga Syed Mehdi, who contested as the Congress candidate against Omar during the 1998 Lok Sabha elections, was killed by militants. Two years later, Roohullah joined the NC. He has won the Budgam constituency for the second consecutive time. Pursuing his B.A., Roohullah is known to be tech-savvy, and has a Facebook account too.
Aijaz Ahmed Jan, 32
The son of a former legislator, Jan lost the bypolls last year. But this time, he won the Poonch Assembly seat in Jammu with a convincing majority. A graduate, Jan pursued a course in computers before joining politics. As the provisional secretary for the party8217;s youth wing, Jan has been working to spread the NC8217;s network across Jammu, especially in its Muslim-dominated hilly districts.
As senior NC members who have been with the party for decades, two 8220;older faces8221; too are likely to play an important role in Omar8217;s government:
Abdul Rahim Rather, 69
A law graduate from Aligarh Muslim University, he is one of the party8217;s stalwarts. Rather first contested the polls as an Independent candidate from central Kashmir8217;s Charar-e-Sharief constituency in 1971, when he lost. In 1977, when Sheikh Abdullah decided to contest polls, Rather won the Charar seat with a thumping majority. And he has never lost since then. This is the sixth consecutive time that he has been elected from the constituency. During the previous NC governments, Rather held the posts of Speaker and finance minister. One of the architects of the party8217;s autonomy report, he was a part of the team that formulated the NC8217;s recent vision document.
Ali Mohammad Sager, 54
The NC8217;s face in Srinagar, Sagar won the polls from the old city8217;s Khanyar constituency for the third consecutive time. A member of the party8217;s core team, he played an important role in the NC8217;s overwhelming success in Srinagar city where it won all the eight constituencies. Sager8217;s son is the mayor of the Srinagar Municipal Corporation.
