Congress and the National Conference (NC) on Monday announced its seat-sharing agreement for Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh region for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, with each party getting three seats each.
As per the agreement, Congress will field its candidates in Udhampur, Jammu and Ladakh Lok Sabha seats, while the National Conference will fight elections in Anantnag, Baramulla and Srinagar.
National Conference leader and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah made the announcement in a joint press conference with Congress in New Delhi.
The announcement comes days after People’s Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti announced her exit from the opposition-led INDIA alliance and said that her party would contest Lok Sabha polls from all seats in Kashmir.
PDP fielded its candidates after it decided to contest all seats alone, blaming Omar Abdullah for ‘non-cooperation’ over the seat-sharing.
Interestingly, Mehbooba Mufti will be contesting the Lok Sabha elections from Anantnag-Rajouri, making it a high-voltage battle as Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) chief and former Congress veteran Ghulam Nabi Azad and NC leader Mian Altaf Ahmad are also contesting from this seat.
NC’s Hasnain Masoodi is the sitting MP from the Anantnag-Rajouri constituency.
The decision to move away from INDIA bloc may have also dented the prospects of the Peoples Alliance for the Gupkar Declaration (PAGD), a political formation that was formed to fight for the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status.
The Lok Sabha elections in the Union Territory will be held in the first five phases on April 19 (Udhampur), April 26 (Jammu), May 7 (Anantnag-Rajouri), May 13 (Srinagar) and May 20 (Baramulla). The counting of votes will take place on June 4.
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 today announced its seat-sharing agreement for J-K, Ladakh region for Lok Sabha elections.){kind=link}