JK elections: With reputation of over a dozen veterans at stake in first phase, Mehbooba faces challenge to save her legacy.

This time, he is betting on his daughter Iltija Mufti to stay out of the election vortex. The reputation of more than a dozen former ministers and former MLAs, including two former MPs, is at stake in the election. Polling will be held in 24 seats in Anantnag, Pulwama, Shopian and Kulgam in South Kashmir and Doda, Kishtwar and Ramban districts in Chenab Valley.

CPI(M) stalwart MY Tarigami, Mehbooba Mufti’s daughter Iltija Mufti and Waheed-ur-Rehman Para, Sartaj Madani, former MPs Hasnain Masoodi and Nazir Ahmed Laway, Shaukat Ahmed Ganai, Congress national general secretary GA Mir and BJP’s Sofi Yusuf and former Jammu division ministers Sunil Sharma and Shaktiraj Parihar, former MP Dalip Singh Parihar, Shagun Parihar of the Parihar brothers’ family who died in the terror attack, former NC state president Vikar Rasool Wani, former MP Saruri MLC Firdous Tak, DDC president Pooja Thakur, former minister Abdul Majeed Wani and Najeeb Suhrawardy were the key faces.

In 2014, the lotus blossomed for the first time in Doda, Ramban and Kishtwar in the Chenab Valley and repeating it a decade later remains a challenge for the BJP.

The contest in South Kashmir this time is getting interesting with independents associated with the Awami Yitzhak Party and the Congress Party. The Congress will face the challenge of repeating its past performance along with the regional parties NC-PDP.