J&K polls: Omar urges voters to avoid splitting ballot, hopes for NC-Congress alliance victory

SRINAGAR: National Conference (NC) vice president Omar Abdullah on Wednesday expressed hope that voters in Jammu and Kashmir would avoid “fragmentation of their votes”, warning that many independent candidates in the Valley were contesting with the aim to divide the ballot.

“People will have to keep it (a huge number of independent candidates contesting) in mind, because most of these candidates are in Kashmir. It seems it is an attempt to fragment votes and divide people.

“I hope the voters will remain cautious of these and avoid fragmentation of their votes in this election,” Abdullah told PTI Videos here.

The NC leader also said he is hopeful that people will vote in favour of the NC-Congress pre-poll alliance.

“We are hoping that vote will be in favour of the candidates of NC-Congress alliance in which a CPI(M) member is also a part of, but it is the voters who will decide. We have tried to take our agenda for J&K for the next five years to the voters, let us see what happens,” he said.

The former chief minister of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir said the assembly elections, which are being held here after 10 years, are very important.

“The more we talk about the importance of these polls, the less it will be. They are happening after 10 years and a lot has changed in these 10 years. Jammu and Kashmir was divided into two, Ladakh was separated from us, we were granted a UT status even as we fail to understand how it benefitted us.

“We have not forgotten what happened with Jammu and Kashmir on August 5, 2019, so it is a very important election in all respects,” he said.

When asked if Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s rally here on Thursday would have any impact on the polls, Abdullah said there would not be any such impact in the Kashmir valley.

“Nothing in Kashmir. It will be a huge thing if the BJP can give a tough fight on a single seat in Kashmir. The election will be incomplete without the PM’s visit to Kashmir, but it will not make a difference on the seats here,” he said.

To a question about Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s remarks that even as NC and PDP have promised restoration of Article 370 in their manifestos, the BJP government at the Centre will not allow that, the NC vice president said many issues do not need the government’s approval.

“We know whose government is there, but why is there a need to threaten us? There are some things which do not need government’s approval, like this election. This election is not taking place because the government wanted to conduct them. Had it been up to them, we will not have got this election.

“This election is taking place because of the Supreme Court’s order. The SC ordered elections to be conducted before September 30 and that is why they are being conducted. If the Centre does not do the other things, then we can have them through the SC,” he added. (PTI)