IAS topper of 2010-batch Shah Faesal Wednesday said he has decided to chart out an “independent political journey” for himself.
Taking to social networking website Facebook, Faesal wrote: “Respecting the public sentiment, I have decided to chart my independent political journey.”
This clearly indicates that Faesal would either float his own party or join the electoral arena as an independent candidate.
Faesal also launched a crowdfunding campaign for “clean politics and corruption-free administration” in the state.
“This is a people’s movement and it will be funded by the people. People are the only agencies who will help this succeed. Believe in me, be patient with me in this long and difficult journey and donate for this cause,” he wrote.
Faesal had quit the prestigious service earlier this month to join electoral politics.
“I imagine a politics where youth can lead the change and take charge of their future; I wish to partner with a new generation of young leaders who can stand up for human rights, environment, free speech and rule of law,” he wrote.
Faesal said he wants to facilitate intra-state dialogue and “seek help from the people of India to humanise the narrative around Kashmir conflict so that lasting peace can be achieved in J&K State”.
“My mission is to truthfully represent aspirations, culture, fears, and dreams of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, across the world,” he wrote.
He said that he had never imagined that his small act of defiance to highlight political deadlock in J&K would evoke such a response across the world.
Citing “unabated killings in Kashmir and lack of any sincere outreach from New Delhi” for his decision to quit bureaucracy, Faesal is the first young IAS officer in Kashmir to take the move that is widely discussed and debated in the region.