Who is Shagun Parihar, the BJP winner in J&K, whose father was killed in terror attack?

The results for the Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir polls were released on Tuesday.

The National Conference (NC)-Congress combine are ready to take charge in Jammu and Kashmir after they secured 49 of the Union Territory’s 90 seats, beating the exit polls’ predictions.

The BJP performed better with 29 seats, four more than its count in 2014, when the elections were last held in the former state.

Among the winning saffron party candidates is Shagun Parihar, 29, from the Kishtwar seat.

Here’s all we know about her.

About Shagun Parihar

BJP leader Shagun Parihar won the Kishtwar seat by beating veteran NC leader and former minister Sajad Ahmed Kichloo by a narrow margin of 521 votes.

According to the Election Commission website, Parihar garnered 29,053 votes in the Muslim-dominated seat and Kichloo bagged 28,532 votes.

She is also the lone BJP woman candidate and among the three women who have won in Jammu and Kashmir elections. The other two women are former NC minister Sakeena Masood, who won DH Pura assembly segment in Kulgam district, and NC’s Shamima Firdous, who secured Habbakadal constituency of Srinagar district.

Parihar’s father, Ajit Parihar, and uncle Anil Parihar, were killed in a terror attack on November 1, 2018, just before the panchayat polls. Her uncle was a senior BJP leader, who had managed to garner some support from the Muslim community in the district. He was actively involved in politics, especially during the BJP’s Doda Bachao Andolan in the 1990s, according to The Times of India.

The 29-year-old is pursuing a PhD in Electronics and holds an MTech degree in Electrical Power Systems. She is also preparing for the J&K Public Service Commission examination.

Parihar, who was focused on her academic pursuits, had no plans to join politics. However, a sense of duty to her community and her family legacy in politics led her to join the arena.

She has total declared assets of Rs 92.4 lakh.

A strategic move

BJP’s decision to field Parihar in Kishtwar, an area affected by acts of terror in the past, as its candidate was a strategic move to gain support from the region’s diverse religious demographics.

The party hoped to bridge the gap between the sizeable Muslim population and the smaller Hindu community and foster a sense of unit.

Understanding the concerns, Parihar, in maiden electoral campaign, stated that the election was a choice between those accused of plundering businesses and perpetrating violence and those committed to “bringing peace, security, and prosperity” to the people.

She asserted that the votes for her will not be for her family, but for every family that has suffered losses due to terrorists in J&K.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his first campaign rally in J&K’s Doda district on September 14, referred to her tragic background and stated she was a “living example of the BJP’s resolve to end terrorism” in the Union Territory.

“She is not just our candidate, she is the living example of the BJP’s resolve to finish off terrorism,” PM Modi said.

For those uninitiated, Kishtwar has been a bastion for the NC. It was only after 2014 that the political landscape changed and the BJP secured the seat for the first time, with its candidate Sunil Sharma emerging triumphant.

Her focus post victory

Parihar told reporters upon being declared elected, “I bow before the people of Kishtwar for their faith in me and my party. Their support is deeply appreciated. I am humbled by their endorsement.”

She underlined that her victory belongs to the nationalist people of Jammu and Kashmir. “It is their blessing,” she added.

given the historical challenges, she ensured that safety and security of the region will be her top focus.

This election, she added, was about all families who have sacrificed for the nation, not just her own.

“My victory honours all those who have sacrificed their lives fighting terrorism and protecting the country,” she said, for whom PM Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah campaigned extensively.