In what may further strain the ties between the allies, former Jammu and Kashmir Congress chief Vikar Rasool Wani has accused the Omar Abdullah-led National Conference of “colluding” with the BJP during the October 24 Rajya Sabha elections.
“I want to tell the high command that they should walk out of the alliance. They (the NC) are dishonest people and entered into a compromise with the BJP in the Rajya Sabha polls, where four of its MLAs voted for the BJP,” Wani alleged, while addressing party workers in Banihal on Monday.
Wani’s remarks sparked strong reactions from both within his own party and the NC. J&K Congress chief spokesperson Ravinder Sharma distanced the party from Wani’s statements, describing them as his “individual views”. The NC, too, dismissed the allegations outright.
“Wani is frustrated after losing last year’s Assembly polls by around 15,000 votes. All our MLAs voted for the NC candidate in the Rajya Sabha polls,” NC Jammu chief Ratan Lal Gupta said.
In the 88-member Assembly, the NC, with the combined strength of its allies — the Congress (six MLAs), the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (one MLA), and five Independents — had a total of 53 votes, including 41 of its own. This made its victory on three of the four contested Rajya Sabha seats almost certain.
The ruling NC had more than the 30 votes required to comfortably secure the first two seats. For the third seat, it had 30 votes and required additional support from non-BJP Opposition groups, including the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Sajad Lone’s People’s Conference (which abstained), and three Independents.
However, the contest for the fourth seat took an unexpected turn. The NC’s candidate, Imran Nabi Dar, was banking on seven additional votes from outside its alliance. In a surprising outcome, four of those votes went to BJP’s candidate and Jammu and Kashmir president, Sat Sharma, raising his tally to 32, while three other votes were declared invalid.
Story continues below this ad
Following the results, Chief Minister Abdullah had expressed disappointment over what he described as a “betrayal”. “We were let down at the last moment,” Abdullah said, asking how the BJP had secured four extra votes and who among the MLAs had invalidated their ballots by marking the wrong preference number. He strongly denied any cross-voting by NC legislators.
Adding to the controversy, People’s Conference chief Sajad Lone labeled the Rajya Sabha elections “a fixed match.” Meanwhile, Mehraj Malik — the jailed Aam Aadmi Party MLA from Doda — claimed that he had voted for NC candidates believing his support “could make a difference.”
“Unfortunately, now I realise that some among them were already compromised and had decided to side with the BJP,” Malik said, adding that the ruling party “was never serious about winning this seat.
