Congress, NC settle LS seat-sharing pact for J&K, Ladakh; leave out PDP

The Congress and the J&K National Conference (NC) have sealed an alliance for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah and senior Congress leader Salman Khurshid announced on Monday.

“Udhampur, Jammu and Ladakh will go to the Congress and the NC will contest in Anantnag, Baramulla and Srinagar,” said Omar.

“Many people were curious what are we doing in J&K.... Whatever happens in J&K, it has a greater ramification,” Khurshid added.

This alliance means that the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP), a constituent of the opposition INDIA bloc that includes the Congress and the NC, would not be part of the arrangement.

While announcing candidates for all three Lok Sabha seats in Kashmir, PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti had, however, clarified that her party would support the Congress on the two seats in Jammu.

Omar and Khurshid maintained that there was a limited scope for bringing the PDP on board since there were only six seats; five in J&K and one in Ladakh

“The PDP is a part of our INDIA bloc but in a small state, there is limited scope of seat sharing,” said Khurshid.

Omar said they did make an effort. “But in the six seats, out of which three are already with the NC, it becomes difficult. We had tried to negotiate for the assembly polls, but that was not acceptable to her (PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti).”

Omar announced that the NC has started the campaign for Raman Bhalla and Lal Singh, the two Congress candidates for Jammu and Udhampur. “We will expect the Congress to campaign for our candidates too,” he added.

Asked about Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) leader Ghulam Nabi Azad deciding to contest the Lok Sabha elections from Anantnag parliamentary constituency, Omar said, “If he had fought from Doda region, it would have hurt the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).”

Omar added that the alliance will win all six seats in the J&K and Ladakh. “This election will also be a message on the abrogation of Article 370. This election will also give a reply to what happened in August, 2019,” he said

In Ladakh, which has mainly Buddhist and Muslim population, the Congress and the NC would look to cash in on the “resentment” against the BJP.

The people of Kargil and Leh have been demanding statehood and protection under the sixth schedule of the Constitution, and multiple rounds of talks between the UT’s representatives and the Centre have ended without any conclusive outcomes.

For over a year now, the people of Ladakh have united under the banner of Ladakh Apex Body and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA).

In 2019, BJP’s Jamyang Tsering Namgyal had defeated independent candidate Sajjad Hussain by over 10,000 votes. The saffron party is likely to name Namgyal as its pick from Ladakh again.

The Congress has almost finalised former minister Nowang Rigzin Jora as the candidate from Ladakh and is waiting for approval from the party high command.

The alliance hopes Jora would garner support of Buddhist as well as Muslim voters as the two religious schools of Kargil Imam Khomehi Memorial Trust (IKMT) and Islamia School (IS) will put their weight behind Jora to “teach the BJP a lesson.”

“The two religious school which hold considerable clout among the people in Muslim-dominated Kargil are supporting the INDIA bloc candidate and if this support remains intact, the alliance will have a massive edge. In the past, Muslims of Kargil have preferred Muslim candidates over a Buddhist candidate. This time, equation has changed,” said Bashir Ahmad, a political analyst from Kargil.

Congress spokesperson Sheikh Amir said that for Ladakh, the Congress will put a strong candidate on behalf of India bloc.