Sadiq Ali, a nice man to know

Syed Ali Safvi

As the old adage goes, "Those who live in the hearts of others, never die.” Three weeks have passed since Kashmir lost a veteran politician, acclaimed poet, flamboyant writer, and an active environmentalist in Sadiq Ali, but his memories will always live within the hearts of many of his admirers.

Sadiq Ali was among very few Kashmiri politicians who did not allow their political differences to come in personal relationship. Although, he switched from one party to another, he was never heard going public against any party.

Sadiq or "Aseer", as he was known among literary circles, was keen to develop different facets of his personality, which in turn helped him retain a good measure of balance despite having to change political affiliation at times.

He was born into a humble family of Hassanbabad in Srinagar. Jaffar Ali, his father, was a paper machie artist and a rich businessman.

After completing MA in Political Science from Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), Sadiq plunged into politics at a young age.

He clung to his principles all his life and always held himself aloof from petty political intrigues. He maintained a decent public profile, showing keen desire to make his mark in spheres other than politics.

For his unflinching willingness to call spade a spade and deep political insight, most political leaders held him in good regard.

He contested 1967 election from Budgam assembly segment and lost to National Conference (NC) candidate, Hakim Syed Mehdi.

In 1977, after Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah returned to power, Sadiq was nominated to State Legislative Council on the recommendations of Ayatollah Aga Syed Yousuf Budgami.

This was the time when Sadiq came close to Sheikh Abdullah and Begum Abdullah. After Sheikh’s death, Farooq Abdullah again nominated Sadiq to the state Legislative Council in 1983.

In 1996, he successfully contested as NC candidate from Zadibal assembly segment.

Sadiq remained treasurer of NC working committee for 23 long years, during which he grew close to the party and was always consulted by the party leadership on crucial political and party matters. Though he was considered a balanced representative of Shia community in NC, he never got the ministerial birth.

In 2002 assembly election, Sadiq was initially denied, but later given the party ticket to contest from Zadibal assembly segment.

Being an executive member of J&K Anjuman Sharie Shian and one of the close confidantes of its founder, Sadiq Ali would enjoy popular support in elections particularly from Zadibal segment where the Anjuman had considerable sway over the major chunk of voters.

However, in 2002, things had changed. The party which Sadiq was representing had denied mandate to Aga Yousuf’s son, Aga Syed Mehmood. Consequently, Sadiq was asked to leave the party, which he refused. He contested election and lost to the Ajuman Sharie-backed independent candidate, Shahjahan Dar.

Sadiq accused then senior NC leader and minister, Moulvi Iftikhar Hussain Ansari, of sabotaging his re-election bid from Zadibal. He said that the NC leader’s supporters had cast their votes in his opponent’s favour.

Sadiq demanded action from the party high command against the leader. However, after he felt that his incessant pleas were falling on deaf ears, he decided to quit the party on moral grounds.

After leaving NC, the dejected Sadiq joined PDP and was asked to handle state affairs of the party.

On March 9, 2008, NC patron, Farooq Abdullah, announced that Sadiq has rejoined the party.

As a legislator, Sadiq was a cut above the rest given his indepth understanding of political, economic and cultural environment of the state.

It was on Sadiq’s suggestion that the autonomy resolution was brought for detailed discussions and subsequent voting in the state assembly in June 1999.

During his House debates, he vociferously opposed the unification of Pakistan-administered Kashmir (PoK) with Jammu and Kashmir, asserting that “adopting the resolution would only increase tensions between India and Pakistan”.

Sadiq had also given some important recommendations to resolve the Kashmir imbroglio. The “Self Rule” report put forth by him has also been widely endorsed both in India and Pakistan and has been regarded as one of the most “workable solutions” of the six-decade old dispute.

Besides being a noble politician, Sadiq was an active environmentalist. His contribution in the field of environmental protection is laudable.

Pained by the pitiable plight of Dal lake and other water bodies, he had written a detailed research paper about the conservation of Dal lake to prevent the waterbody from further degradation. Sadiq had also written a comprehensive paper on the deteriorating condition of the state forests.

Sadiq Ali is survived by his wife and four sons, youngest of whom, Tanvir Sadiq, was elected as a municipal councilor from Madin Sahab constituency. Tanvir had also unsuccessfully contested 2008 Assembly election from Zadibal segment as independent candidate.