'Baseless and false': Ghulam Nabi Azad's party refutes reports of merger with Congress

Ghulam Nabi Azad's Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) on Sunday refuted reports of its merger with the Congress. In a statement, DPAP spokesperson Salman Nizami said that ever since Azad left the Congress Party, neither Azad has approached any congress leader nor any congress leader has ever approached him directly or telephonically.

"Thus, these rumours are totally baseless and false, just to create confusion and break our party. Mr Azad has requested all our party leaders and workers not to get into this trap and also requested the media persons not to give any importance to these rumours," the statement said. 

The development comes just two days after the Election Commission announced dates for assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir. All regional and national parties have begun preparations for the polls, the first assembly elections in the last 10 years.  

Former J&K Minister Taj Mohiuddin quits Ghulam Nabi Azad's DPAP

On Saturday, former Jammu and Kashmir minister Taj Mohiuddin announced his resignation from the Ghulam Nabi Azad-led DPAP to rejoin the Congress. "I have resigned from the Democratic Progressive Azad Party," Mohiuddin was quoted as saying by news agency PTI. He said he would rejoin the Congress, with which he had been associated for more than four decades, in a few days.

"I have intentions of 'ghar wapsi (homecoming)' but there was no question of doing it until I could ask my workers. Now, my workers have told me in unison to do it. So, I am doing 'ghar wapsi' very soon," he said.

Asked about his reasons for leaving the DPAP, Mohiuddin said he had been with the Congress for about 45 years and his workers associated him only with the grand old party and its symbol. "My workers asked me to rejoin the Congress, so I decided to leave the DPAP and rejoin the Congress," he added.

A former legislator from the Uri assembly segment in north Kashmir's Baramulla district, Mohiuddin resigned from the Congress in August 2022 in support of Azad. He later joined the Azad-led party.

The assembly elections will be conducted in three phases -- on September 18, September 25 and October 1. The results of the polls will be announced on October 4.