Belonging to a middle class family, the victory of an independent candidate Sohail Shahzad from Surankote-B in Poonch district in the District Development Council (DDC) polls came as a surprise to many who knew he wanted to become a Kashmir Administrative Service (KAS) officer.
Sohail failed to pass the KAS interview in 2014 and 2019 and could not fulfill his dream of becoming a KAS officer like many of his friends and batch-mates who went on to become civil servants after completing their studies from the University of Jammu.
Sohail talked about how he faced rejection as he did not have a job and how much worried his family was when all his friends were settled and he was still struggling for a job.
Sohail remained an active student leader in Jammu University during his studies as a law scholar in the Department of Law and led many protest demonstrations.
After winning the polls, Sohail told Greater Kashmir, “It is a turning point in my life. I never thought of becoming a politician. I always studied to become a civil servant to serve the people. I belong to an area, which is still under-developed and needs the attention of the government on many aspects.”
Sohail won DDC seat from Surankote-B defeating his nearest rival National Conference (Peoples’ Alliance for Gupkar Declaration) Sharaz Malik with a vote margin of 2984. Sohail got 5908 votes and while his rival Sharaz got 2924 votes.
“It was a political fight between powerful candidates backed by all resources with an independent candidate with no money or support from any powerful lobby, but it was the motivation of the people of Surankote who inspired me,” Sohail said.
He said during lockdown he returned home and was disappointed with the poverty and ignorance of the innocent people of Surankote.
“It was at this time that I decided to visit places and meet people,” he said. “When I filed the nomination papers from Surankote-B, people said I was poor, had no money and did not have any political background. However, the poor and neglected people supported me. They found themselves in me. I will work for the people of my constituency without any bias.”