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| Curtains Fall On DPAP | | | Much hyped Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) led by former Chief Minister and veteran politician Ghulam Nabi Azad has almost disappeared from the political arena of Jammu and Kashmir.
Recently former minister Choudhary Gharu Ram, who had stayed with DPAP despite all odds, said goodbye to the party and rejoined the Congress. Ram was among the few prominent leaders who stayed with Azad even after several senior figures and his long-time loyalists— including Ghulam Mohammad Saroori, Jugal Kishore Sharma and Abdul Majid Wani — had already parted ways with the party.
The DPAP was launched on September 26, 2022, in Jammu and Kashmir with a promise that it would emerge as an alternative to regional parties, but it couldn’t take off despite most of the top Congress leaders from J&K joining the party. The party has fallen like a pack of cards.
The DPAP failed to win a single seat in both the 2024 Lok Sabha and Assembly elections. Of the 23 Assembly constituencies it contested, five of its candidates secured fewer votes than the None of the Above (NOTA) option, reflecting the party’s sharply declining public support.
Azad dissolved all DPAP committees — at the state, provincial, zonal, district and block levels — on April 14, 2025. While the official explanation described the move as part of a “restructuring exercise,” which was an attempt to salvage an organisation already struggling to survive. More than restructuring it was like a surrender.
At the heart of this decline lies a fundamental question of leadership and intent. Speculation that Azad himself may be stepping back from active politics, or even tacitly encouraging loyalists to seek political rehabilitation elsewhere, has only added to the uncertainty. In politics, perception often becomes reality; the absence of a clear and assertive leadership line has accelerated the party’s disintegration.
DPAP’s fall also reflects the rigid nature of Jammu and Kashmir’s political environment, where credibility, consistency, and grassroots connect are decisive. Voters in the region, having witnessed decades of political upheaval, are unlikely to invest faith in formations that appear unstable or opportunistic.
Ultimately, the story of DPAP serves as a cautionary tale. Political capital, no matter how vast, cannot substitute for sustained organisation-building, ideological clarity, and public engagement. Without these, even the most promising ventures can collapse like a pack of cards—leaving behind lessons that future political actors would do well to heed. |
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