The National Conference-Congress alliance has won the Jammu and Kashmir polls and NC Vice President Omar Abdullah is all set to become the chief minister again. The first assembly election after the abrogation of section 370, conducted in three phases, saw brisk polling.
Omar Abdullah who contested from two seats – Ganderbal and Budgam – has won with a margin of over 10,000 votes from both constituencies. After a bitter experience during the Lok Sabha polls, Omar was sceptical about his win until reports of a decisive lead emerged.
Iltija Mufti, daughter of former CM and PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti, lost in the Bijbehara seat to National Conference’s Ahmad Shah Veeri by a margin of 9,770 votes. Conceding defeat, Iltija said she is “accepting verdict of the people”.
Sajad Gani Lone, the People’s Conference leader contested from two seats – Handwara and Kupawara. While he won from Handwara by a margin of 662 seats against NC’s Chowdry Mohammad Ramzan, Lone lost in Kupwara to PDP’s Mir Mohammad Fayaz and came third.
Tariq Hamid Karra, Jammu and Kashmir Congress chief won from Central Shalteng constituency by a margin of 14,395 votes against independent candidate Muhammad Irfan Shah. Karra polled 18,933 votes.
Ravindra Raina, J&K Bharatiya Janata Party chief lost in Nowshera constituency to NC’s candidate Surinder Kumar Choudhary by a margin of 7,819 votes. Raina came second and polled 27,250 votes.
Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami, a senior Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader, has secured his fifth consecutive victory in the Kulgam constituency, defeating Sayar Reshi, an independent candidate backed by banned Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI). Tarigami, who has represented Kulgam since 1996, received 33,390 votes, while Reshi garnered 25,639 votes. A total of ten candidates contested from the Kulgam constituency, but Tarigami’s consistent influence and popularity in the region once again secured his hold on the seat.
-with inputs from Tariq Bhat.