Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) president and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti on Wednesday trained her guns on Independent candidates backed by the Jamaat-e-Islami, suggesting they were fielded by government agencies to cut her votes and asking Jamaat to clarify their stand on the nominees.

Mehbooba’s outburst came a day after she claimed Baramulla MP Sheikh Abdul Rashid, popularly known as Engineer Rashid, was a PDP proxy. Engineer Rashid’s release was ordered by a court on Tuesday.

The PDP president’s tirade against Jamaat candidates sounded bizarre to many as the party has enjoyed the clandestine support of its ranks since it was floated in 1999. Their support, though not the only reason, has helped the party emerge as a rival to the National Conference.

Kashmir’s largest militant group Hizbul Mujahideen is the creation of Jamaat. It was banned in 2018 along with the Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF).

Mehbooba had also fiercely defended Engineer during the recent Lok Sabha polls and was among the first to seek his release.

The two entities seem to have emerged as a major threat to the PDP, prompting Mehbooba to come out openly against them.

The PDP president told reporters on the sidelines of an election rally in Shopian’s Wachi that she did not know whether Jamaat was “really contesting or the agency’s men were contesting elections wearing its attire”.

“Somebody is wearing Jamaat clothes and says he is a Jamaat-e-Islami candidate. Check whether he is a member of the Shura (advisory body) of the Jamaat-e-Islami. If it is banned, whose candidates are they? They (government) have confined Jamaat leaders to their homes. Why are they told to shut their mouths and not talk?” she said.

The former chief minister said she favoured giving five seats to Jamaat once its ban was lifted to contest elections.

“But let the government lift the Jamaat ban. Jamaat should clarify that those coming forward and contesting Assembly elections are their representatives or agents of agencies,” she said.

Top Jamaat leaders including Dr Fayaz Hameed and Faheem Mohammad Ramzan were released from jail in July and they supported the idea of contesting elections. In their absence, Jamaat leaders had floated a panel headed by Ghulam Qadir Wani to take a call on elections. Both Hameed and Ramzan said they backed the panel’s decisions.

Wani has been seen campaigning for candidates backed by the party.

Mehbooba, however, suggested they do not enjoy Jamaat support.

She claimed that several Independents had joined the poll fray at gunpoint to reduce the PDP’s votes.

Mehbooba on Wednesday also stepped up her opposition to Engineer Rashid, asking if he was released, why “thousands of innocents are rotting in jails”.