Congress, the National Conference announce an alliance in Jammu and Kashmir for the Lok Sabha polls.
Despite some initial hiccups, National Conference and Congress on Wednesday sealed the seat-sharing arrangement for the six Lok Sabha constituencies in Jammu and Kashmir.
National Conference will contest all the three seats of the Valley, Baramulla, Srinagar, Anantnag and lone seat of Ladakh, according to the pact. While the Congress will field its candidates in Jammu and Udhampur seats to ensure that the secular votes are not divided and BJP doesn't fit in.
However, Congress will not field its candidate against National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah in Srinagar constituency.
Furthermore, both the parties failed to reach any consensus on Anantnag, Baramulla and Ladakh seats. Later both Congress and NC decided to field their candidates on these three seats though it has been sugarcoated as 'friendly contest'.
Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said, "Keeping in view the stature of Dr Farooq Abdullah in the national and the State politics his party will not field its candidate against him from Srinagar constituency."
Azad lauded the crucial role being played by Dr Abdullah in the national politics in strengthening secular forces and isolating the divisive parties, which pose a grave threat to the unity of the country. "The nation has been hugely heeding to the advice of the towering National Conference leader which was greatly witnessed during the Opposition conclaves in various parts of the country including Kolkatta", he said
National Conference president advised the Congress to stitch an alliance with the like-minded parties elsewhere in the country in order to meet the challenge posed by divisive and communal forces. "The nation is passing through a difficult phase and there was an urgent need to unite and foil the machinations of the inimical forces", Abdullah said.
Six Lok Sabha seats of Jammu and Kashmir will go to polls in five phases. Baramulla and Jammu constituencies will go to polls in the first phase. Srinagar and Udhampur constituencies will go to polls in the second phase. Anantnag constituency will go to polls in third, fourth and fifth phases given the precarious security situation in the south Kashmir region. Ladakh constituency will go to polls in the fifth phase.
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 "(Congress, National Congress alliance in J&K)")
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