Jammu & Kashmir Polls: NC To Fight More Seats Than Congress? Parties Arrive At This Seat-Sharing Formula
Jammu and Kashmir elections 2024: The Congress and National Conference are finalising a seat-sharing formula. The seat-sharing arrangement has been finalised for most seats, Omar Abdullah said.
Jammu and Kashmir elections 2024: As the upcoming Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections draw closer, sources reveal a potential seat-sharing formula within the INDIA bloc, with the Congress expected to contest approximately 40 seats and the National Conference (NC) around 50. Both parties may leave a few seats from their quotas for other alliance partners. National Conference (NC) Vice President Omar Abdullah confirmed on Friday that the seat-sharing arrangement with the Congress has been finalised for the majority of constituencies, with discussions ongoing for the remaining seats. This development came a day after NC President Dr Farooq Abdullah announced a pre-poll alliance with Congress for the assembly polls.
Accompanying Congress candidate Sakina Itoo in Kulgam, where she filed her nomination papers, Omar Abdullah said, “On some seats, both the parties are stuck. However, a meeting will be held again today to discuss the issue to finalise the alliance.”
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Jammu & Kashmir Elections — Alliance Partners Adamant On Certain Seats, Further Meetings To Finalise Candidates: Omar Abdullah
He added that the alliance partners are adamant on certain seats and that further meetings would aim to resolve these impasses to finalise the candidate lists, which are expected to be publicised before August 27. “On few seats, we are adamant and on some others, the local leaders of the Congress are adamant. There will be meetings today as well and we will try to sort out the rest of the seats so as to announce our candidates,” he stated.
Speaking to reporters in Kulgam district of south Kashmir, Omar Abdullah emphasised that the NC and Congress have reached a consensus on the majority of the 90 assembly seats. However, discussions are ongoing for the remaining constituencies. “Consensus has been reached to a large extent. I can tell you that we have reached a consensus on the maximum seats out of the 90,” he said.
JKNC Vice President @OmarAbdullah addresses the media, discussing the upcoming alliance with the INC and the details of the seat distribution. Stay tuned! pic.twitter.com/t0nDPv2XU5
— JKNC (@JKNC_) August 23, 2024
“We have come up with a manifesto. We hope the people will elect us to serve them for the next five years,” he remarked.
When questioned about the timeline for announcing candidates for the first phase of the polls, Omar Abdullah responded, “There is no hurry.” He further addressed the rivalry with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) by pointing out the longstanding efforts of their constituency in-charges, asserting, “Our list will have to be out in any case by August 27.”
The NC-Congress pre-poll alliance was initially announced by NC President Farooq Abdullah following discussions with Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, and Mallikarjun Kharge, President of the Congress party, on Thursday.
The assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir are scheduled to be held in three phases on September 18, September 25, and October 1, with vote counting set for October 4.
The alliance aims to present a unified front to voters, with the joint manifesto promising dedicated service to the people of Jammu and Kashmir for the next five years.
The NC took the lead by filing nomination papers from Kulgam on Friday, marking the beginning of the election process since the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019.
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