Srinagar/Jammu: In the first assembly election held in Jammu and Kashmir after a decade and abrogation of Article 370, the National Conference (NC)-Congress alliance swept the polls, breaking a three-decade-long jinx by securing a majority on its own.
Out of the 90 seats in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly, the NC-Congress alliance won 48 seats, crossing the majority mark of 46.
Led by veteran politician Farooq Abdullah, the NC secured 42 seats, including 35 from the Kashmir region and the remaining from Jammu. In the Kashmir Valley, the NC contested 40 seats .
NC Vice President Omar Abdullah triumphed, winning both his seats from Budgam and Ganderbal.
Commenting on the results, NC President Farooq Abdullah said that this represents a clear rejection of the Centre's August 5, 2019 move- that revoked J&K’s Special Status.
Farooq Abdullah also announced that Omar will be the chief minister of the coalition government.
The NC’s pre-poll partner, the Congress, made a poor showing, winning just six seats, five of which came from the Kashmir region.
In Jammu, Congress performed poorest, managing to win only the Rajouri (ST) seat. In comparison, Congress had won five seats from Jammu in the 2014 elections.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) maintained its dominance in Jammu, winning the 29 seats from the region. The party failed to even win a single seat from Kashmir. A significant upset occurred to the saffron party as BJP president Ravinder Raina lost his seat from Nowshera.
The NC's dominance was particularly evident in the Kashmir region. Out of the eight seats in Srinagar district, NC won seven. Among the prominent figures to lose in Srinagar were Apni Party president Altaf Bukhari and former mayor Junaid Mattoo.
In Kupwara district, NC secured three of the five seats. A notable NC loss came from former minister Nasir Aslam Wani, who was defeated by PDP’s Fayaz Mir.
In Baramulla district, NC won six of the seven seats. Several prominent candidates, including former deputy chief minister Muzaffar Baig and former ministers Bashaarat Bukhari, Taj Mohideen, Ghulam Hassan Mir, and Imran Ansari, were among the losers.
Khursheed Sheikh, brother of MP Abdul Rashid Sheikh, won the Langate seat, while People’s Conference chief Sajad Lone won from Handwara but lost in Kupwara, where he also contested. Engineer Rashid’s party failed to make a mark in the Assembly election.
In south Kashmir, an area once dominated by the PDP, NC won 10 of the 16 seats. Among those prominent candidates defeated in south Kashmir were Iltija Mufti, daughter of PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti, and former PDP ministers Abdul Rehman Veeri, Sartaj Madni, and Mehbooba Baig.
The election results mark a devastating loss for the PDP and the party witnessed rout in its bastion South Kashmir. PDP had emerged as the single-largest party in the 2014 elections and formed a coalition government with the BJP until 2018. The 2024 Assembly election results represent the PDP’s worst electoral performance since its founding in 1999.
In the Jammu region, the BJP improved its performance, securing 29 of the 43 seats. This is an improvement over the 25 seats it won in the 2014 elections when it formed a coalition government with the PDP. Prominent losers in Jammu included Lal Singh and Raman Bala of the Congress.