Elections result: Omar Abdullah takes total responsibility for defeat

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Friday took "total responsibility" for the defeat of his party in the Lok Sabha polls and said the result was a "rude awakening" for those who wanted to wish away the Modi factor.

However, Omar, who made a brief statement at his residence to mediapersons, said the outcome of the results would not make the National Conference irrelevant. Congratulating the BJP and NDA, Omar said, "Those who wanted to wish away Modi factor in the elections had a rude awakening."

Acknowledging that he was yet to come to terms with the poll results, Omar said it was time for self-introspection for the party and learn quick lessons with assembly elections being round the corner. "I am still coming to terms with the results. We will have to go segment wise, assembly wise. There are assembly segments where we have taken a beating. There are lessons to be learnt. In constituencies where development has taken in the last five-and-a-half years, we have not won," Omar said.

He said the party would soon analyse the results. "We have learnt from the last polls, when we were defeated in 2002". He said the main opposition PDP, which has won the three seats, did not become irrelevant when they had lost in the last Parliamentary polls.

"This is a setback. I hope you can give me sometime and we will sit together in the party to analyse the results," he said and added that the results neither were an end of the National Conference nor will they become irrelevant. The ruling NC-Congress coalition is facing a rout in the state.