Syed Mohammad Altaf Bukhari is an Indian politician hailing from Jammu and Kashmir. He is the president of the Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party, a political organization, which he launched in 2020.^[1] He served as the Member of Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly from 2015 to 2018, representing the Amira Kadal Assembly constituency. He served as the education minister of Jammu and Kashmir^[2] and later assumed the additional responsibility of the Finance, Labour and Employment ministry.^[3][4]

Early life and education

He holds a Bachelor's degree in Agricultural science from Government Agriculture College in Wadura-Sopore, obtained in 1980 through Kashmir University.^[5] His father, Syed Mohammad Iqbal Bukhari, was a noted businessman and the founder of FIL Industries.^[6]

Career

In 2014, Altaf Bukhari won the assembly election from the Amira Kadal Assembly constituency, representing the Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party. Subsequently, in 2015, Altaf Bukhari was appointed as Roads and Buildings Minister^[7] in the Mufti Mohammad Sayeed-led PDP-BJP coalition. He also served as the Minister for Floriculture, Gardens and Parks in the Mufti Mohammad Sayeed ministry.^[8] However, upon Sayeed's demise in 2016, Bukhari was not included in the cabinet when Mehbooba Mufti assumed office.^[9]

In February 2017, Bukhari was appointed as the minister for Education in the government.^[2] Later, in March 2018, he was assigned the additional responsibility of the Finance Ministry,^[3] the Ministry of Labour and Employment in the state government.^[4]

When the BJP-PDP coalition government dissolved in June 2018, Altaf Bukhari emerged as a consensus candidate for Chief Minister, backed by the PDP, the Congress, and the Jammu & Kashmir National Conference in November 2018.^[10][11]

He formed his own party called Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party on 8 March 2020,^[12] nearly a year after being expelled from the PDP.^[13]

He has been granted Z+ level security, which is the highest level of security provided by the Indian government.^[14][15]

Business

His family runs FIL Industries Limited, a conglomerate with interests in agriculture, food and beverages, tourism, hospitality, and mountain infrastructure development. He also previously served as the CEO of FIL Industries.^[16] The company was established by his father.^[6] Initially, Altaf Bukhari took over the pesticide business and expanded its operations across different parts of the country. Notably, FIL Industries Limited is the only private entity collaborating with German partners in the processing of apples.^[17]

He is credited with introducing controlled atmosphere storage (CAS) in Kashmir and providing assistance to the Container Corporation of India in establishing a 12,000-tonne CAS facility in Haryana.^[18][17]

Other engagements

• He has held positions on the Board of Directors of the National Horticulture Board and on the Board of Governors of the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi.^[10]
• He has also served as a member of the Management Board of the Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences & Technology of Jammu.^[10]
• Various news reports suggest that Altaf Bukhari, then aged 24, played a key role in the ousting of Farooq Abdullah's government in 1984. As a result, Farooq Abdullah was replaced by his brother-in-law, Ghulam Mohammad Shah as the new chief minister.^[17] It is believed that Bukhari acted as a mediator between the central government led by Indira Gandhi and the 13 rebel MLAs, who broke away from the National Conference and formed a new political party, Awami National Conference.^[19][20]