Srinagar, Oct 08 (KINS): The Congress party has faced a historic decline in the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections, winning only one of its 29 candidates in the Jammu region.
This disappointing result has led to losses for prominent Congress leaders, including two working presidents.
In a pre-poll alliance with the National Conference (NC), Congress fielded 32 candidates mainly in Jammu, while the NC contested 51 seats. The Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party each secured one seat, with both parties engaging in a friendly contest for five seats.
In Jammu, Congress managed to win just the Rajouri seat, a stark decrease from the five seats it held in 2014. Iftikar Ahmed emerged victorious, defeating BJP’s Vibodh Gupta by 1,404 votes, receiving 28,923 votes. The NC did not contest this seat as part of their seat-sharing arrangement.
In contrast, the party performed better in the Kashmir region, winning two seats. Former minister Peerzada Mohammad Syed defeated PDP’s Mehboob Beg by 1,686 votes, while former MLA Nizam-ud-din Bhat secured the Bandipora seat for Congress.
Other Congress leaders in Kashmir, including the state president Tariq Hameed Karra (Central Shalteng), AICC general secretary G A Mir (Dooru), and Irfan Hafiz Lone (Wagoora-Kreeri), also emerged victorious.
The losses in Jammu signal a troubling trend for Congress, as several senior leaders, including two working presidents and former ministers, fell to BJP candidates.
Notable figures trailing or defeated include working president and former deputy chief minister Tara Chand (Chhamb), working president and former minister Raman Bhalla (R S Pura), Pradesh Congress Committee president and former minister Vikar Rasool Wani (Banihal), and two-time former MP Choudhary Lal Singh (Basohli), among others.(KINS)
Congress faces major decline in JK Assembly Elections
