The National Conference (NC) and Congress have struck a deal for the upcoming Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir settling on how to share seats. Both parties shook hands on Monday after long talks at NC president Farooq Abdullah’s house. They reached this agreement just before time ran out to submit names for the first round of voting.
As part of the deal, the NC will run for 51 of the 90 seats in the Union Territory, while Congress will put up candidates in 32 seats. Also, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] and the Jammu & Kashmir Panthers Party will each get one seat. But in five areas—Sopore, Banihal, Bhaderwah, Doda, and Nagrota—both parties will run candidates, which they call a “friendly fight.”
Friendly Fights’ Announced in Five Key Constituencies
During the announcement, Congress General Secretary K C Venugopal stressed that the alliance aims to protect Kashmir’s essence from what they claim are BJP‘s efforts to weaken it. Farooq Abdullah stood beside him as they presented the alliance as a choice that favors the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
The talks that led to this deal were friendly, and both sides felt sure they could set up the next government together. The partnership was first announced on August 22 after Congress bigwigs Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge met with NC leaders in Srinagar, but it took four days to sort out who would run for which seats. The hold-up happened because Congress wanted more seats in Kashmir, but NC didn’t want to give them up thinking they had a stronger presence in the Valley.
National Conference and Congress Alliance Aims to Counter BJP’s Influence in Jammu and Kashmir
The NC plans to run for 18 seats in the initial voting round on September 18, which covers 24 seats. They’ll compete for 12 seats in the Valley and six in the Jammu area. The Congress party aims to win three seats in the Valley and two in Jammu. In South Kashmir’s Kulgam CPI(M) leader M Y Tarigami will try to secure a seat.
After sharing seats, the NC put out its list of people running in the first round, which had some big names. Hasnain Masoodi, who beat Mehbooba Mufti in the 2019 Lok Sabha vote, will run from Pampore, while Bashir Ahmad Veeri will go up against PDP’s Iltija Mufti in Bijbehara. In Jammu, Sajad Ahmad Kitchloo and Kahlid Najeed Suharwardy will run from Kishtwar and Doda.
Omar Abdullah Suggests He Might Change His Mind About Skipping the Election
Tariq Hameed Karra, J&K Congress chief, said the alliance took shape while keeping in mind the “sensitivities” of both parties highlighting their thorough examination of disputed constituencies.
When asked about the BJP’s attacks on the alliance the NC’s pledge to try to bring back Articles 370 and 35A, Venugopal brought up the BJP’s past partnerships with both the NC and PDP despite their political stances. He mentioned that once in power, the alliance would create a common minimum program (CMP) to steer their governance.
Omar Abdullah, the NC Vice-President, made it clear that the Congress didn’t raise any issues with their manifesto. He said they would talk about a CMP (Common Minimum Programme.)after they knew the election results. He also suggested he might change his mind about not running in the elections. He explained he didn’t want to make the Assembly seem less important by staying out of the voting process.
People will vote in three stages. The first one happens on September 18 then on September 25, and on October 1. We’ll know who won on October 4.
News Source: The Indian Express
