Srinagar, (CNI) The PDP and the National Conference (NC), both partners in the India Bloc in Jammu and Kashmir and part of the People’s Alliance for Gapkar Declaration (PAGD), are set to contest against each other for three Lok Sabha seats in the Kashmir Valley. are .
Experts believe this will play into the hands of the Bharatiya Janata Party, which is yet to announce its candidate for the Anantnag-Rajouri Lok Sabha seat, due on May 7.
Although the Peoples Democratic Party has not yet announced its candidates, sources told Kashmirit that the party is likely to field either Waheedur Rehman Para or Mehbooba Mufti for the seat. “We will not fight from Jammu, but talks are going on for three Lok Sabha seats in Kashmir. Mehbooba Mufti told mediapersons on Wednesday that the decision will be shared with all of you in two-three days.
During the press conference, PDP President Mehbooba Mufti accused NC Vice President Omar Abdullah of leaving her with “no alternative”. Omar Abdullah responded, “PDP was deviating from the agreement reached within the People’s Alliance for Gapkar Declaration (PAGD) during the 2020 District Development Council (DDC) elections.”
Asked about the Congress’s role in resolving the conflict within the India bloc, the party’s J-K in-charge, Bharat Singh Solanki, lamented that despite his efforts, differences persisted. Solanki stressed the bloc’s aim to oust the BJP from J-K and expressed confidence in achieving this with public support.
Mehbooba highlighted the need for unity among political parties in Jammu and Kashmir after the abrogation of the state’s special status in 2019. He criticized the NC’s “unilateral decision” to contest all three seats in Kashmir, expressing dismay at their leadership.
Abdullah defended the NC’s decision, citing the PDP’s refusal to adhere to the agreed seat allocation formula based on the results of the 2019 parliamentary elections. He suggested that if the PDP is contesting in all the seats, it may not be interested in an alliance in future assembly elections.
Experts believe that this will help Bharatiya Janata Party a lot.
“The reliability of the vote of the Kashmiri-speaking linguistic group is questionable, as it is fragmented. Historically, the Gujjar Bakarwal community has represented a strong voting bloc. However, the separation of the Pahari group from this minority bloc There is a challenge for all political parties,” said an expert.
He noted, “The Pahari vote bank looks set to decisively support the Bharatiya Janata Party, while the Gujjar-Bakarwal vote is expected to be dispersed among the PDP, NC, and Azad factions.” (CNI)
