The Democratic Progressive Azad Party ( DPAP) formerly Democratic Azad Party is an Indian political party formed by Ghulam Nabi Azad on 26 September 2022 in

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Kashmir, the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered ...

. The party's top three agendas in

are restoration of full statehood, right to land and employment to native domiciles. The party's ideology is based on the ideals of

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

Name

The name of the Democractic Azad Party was announced by Ghulam Nabi Azad on 26 September 2022. He received almost 1,500 names in Sanskrit, Hindi, and Urdu as suggestion for name of the party. He preferred this one since it contains a Hindustani term. On 18 November 2022,

Election Commission of India The Election Commission of India (ECI) is a constitutional body. It was established by the Constitution of India to conduct and regulate elections in the country. Article 324 of the Constitution provides that the power of superintendence, di ...

rejected the name and asked Azad to change it. In December 2022, the final name of the ''Democratic Azad Party'' was changed to ''Democratic Progressive Azad Party''.

History

On 26 August 2022, Azad announced his resignation from the

Congress Party The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...

in a public letter after launching a scathing attack on the top leadership, particularly Rahul Gandhi. After the resignation of Azad, J&K's Congress including former ministers R.S. Chib, Ghulam Mohammad Saroori and Abdul Rashid; former MLAs Mohammad Amin Bhat, Gulzar Ahmad Wani and Choudhary Mohammad Akram; former MLC Naresh Gupta and party leader Salman Nizami resigned from the basic membership of the

Congress party The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...

in support of Ghulam Nabi Azad. In response to Azad's resignation, the

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...

initially questioned the timing of his decision before launching a vicious counterattack and accusing that he was working closely with the BJP. Azad received criticism from a number of Congress officials, including the party's two chief ministers, Ashok Gehlot and

Bhupesh Baghel Bhupesh Baghel (born 23 August 1960) is an Indian politician serving as the third and current Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh. He was president of Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Committee, Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress. He has been member of State ...

. On 29 August 2022, four politicians from

, including former deputy speaker of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly Gulam Hyder Malik, two MLCs viz. Subash Gupta from Kathua and Sham Lal Bhagat from Doda, General secretary of the Jammu and Kashmir Congress Maheshwar Singh Manhas, and 12 workers of the Apni Party from Doda, including its district president Asgar Hussain Khanday, District general secretary Virender Kumar Sharma, and district vice-president (women's wing) Promila Sharma also resigned from their respective political parties in support of Ghulam Nabi Azad. On 30 August 2022, former deputy chief of Jammu and Kashmir Tara Chand, along with former ministers Abdul Majid Wani, Manohar Lal Sharma,

Gharu Ram Bhagat Gharu Ram Bhagat is an Indian politician from Jammu and Kashmir and member of Democratic Azad Party. Bhagat was a member of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly from the Ranbir Singhpura constituency in Jammu district. He was affiliated ...

, and Balwan Singh, among 64 others, jointly resigned from the

. On 31 August 2022, 42 more politicians from

resigned from their basic membership of Congress to join Azad's new political party. On 1 September 2022, more than 36 Congress leaders—including Anirudh Raina, State Vice President NSUI and Manik Sharma, General Secretary of the

National Students' Union of India The National Students Union of India, the student wing of the Indian National Congress (INC or Congress), was established on 9 April 1971. The organisation was founded by Indira Gandhi after merging the Kerala Students Union and the West Benga ...

(NSUI), the party's student wing—from several universities in Jammu submitted their resignations in support of Ghulam Nabi Azad. On 2 September 2022, Congress leader Rajinder Prasad from Rajouri resigned in favour of Azad after criticising

's functioning. On 4 September 2022, Azad announced the formation of a new political party after resigning from

. He said the people of Jammu and Kashmir will decide the name and the flag for the new party. On 26 September 2022, Azad launched his party as ''Democratic Azad Party''. On 22 December 2022, Azad expelled three leaders from party including Tara Chand, Dr. Manohar Lal and Balwan Singh for 'anti-party' activities.

Flag

The DAP's flag is made up of the colours mustard, white, and dark blue. White denotes peace, blue denotes freedom, wide space, imagination, and limits from the depths of the ocean to the heights of the sky, according to Azad, while mustard denotes creativity and unity in variety.

Organisation and structure

President

Treasurer

General Secretaries

Chief Spokesperson

Spokesperson

Media Coordinators & Additional Spokesperson

Social Media Coordinators

State Committee Jammu & Kashmir

Vice Chairman

G. M. Saroori Ghulam Mohammad Saroori, also known as G. M. Saroori, is an Indian politician and a former legislator of Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly, who represented Inderwal constituency of Kishtwar district from 2002 to 2018 until the coalition go ...

References

{{India topics National political parties in India Indian National Congress breakaway groups