Jammu & Kashmir Assembly Elections: Congress, NC Form Alliance; To Contest On All 90 Seats

In a major political development in Jammu and Kashmir, the National Conference (NC) and Congress have agreed to form a pre-poll alliance ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections.

An alliance with the Congress is final on all 90 assembly seats in Jammu and Kashmir, National Conference president Farooq Adbullah said on Thursday.

The announcement came after Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge called on the National Conference leadership at Abdullah's residence.

"We had a good meeting, in a cordial atmosphere. The alliance is on track and, God willing, it will run smoothly. The alliance is final. It will be signed this evening and the alliance is on all 90 seats," Abdullah told reporters.

The three-phase elections to the 90-member Jammu and Kashmir Assembly will be held on September 18, September 25 and October 1. The results will be declared on October 4.

Abdullah further added, "CPI(M)'s (MY) Tarigami is also with us. I hope our people are with us too and that we win with a huge majority to improve the lives of the people."

Asked about Gandhi's assurance earlier in the day that it was the priority of the Congress and the INDIA bloc to restore statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, Abdullah expressed hope that full statehood with all powers would be restored.

"Statehood is very important for all of us. This has been promised to us. This state has witnessed bad days and we hope it will be restored with its full powers. For that, we stand together with the INDIA bloc," he said.

These Assembly elections are especially crucial as they are the first since the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019.

This constitutional change led to the downgrading of Jammu and Kashmir from a state to a Union Territory and its bifurcation, with Ladakh becoming a separate Union Territory without its own legislature.

These changes have deeply influenced the political dynamics in the region, making the upcoming elections a critical juncture in its recent history.

The last Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir were held in 2014. Since then, the region has seen considerable political and administrative transformations, including its reorganisation and the subsequent imposition of direct central rule.

(With PTI inputs)