Omar claims party votes intact; Sajad Lone calls elections a “fixed match” between NC and BJP
Srinagar: The results of Jammu and Kashmir’s first Rajya Sabha polls after becoming a Union Territory followed expected lines, with the ruling National Conference securing three seats on Friday and the BJP clinching the final one, largely due to a possible strategic cross-voting by a few Independents and the People’s Conference’s abstention.
Polling for the four Rajya Sabha seats was held on Friday, and the entire process was divided into three notifications.
Chowdhry Mohammed Ramzan of the NC had a direct contest with Ali Mohammed Mir of the BJP in one of the seats. Out of the total 87 votes polled, the NC candidate secured 58, while the BJP managed only the party strength of 28, Secretary Legislative Assembly M K Pandita told reporters.
He said one vote was rejected.
In the second seat, the NC’s Sajjad Kitchloo had a direct fight against the BJP’s Rakesh Mahajan. Pandita, who was the returning officer for the elections, said Kitchloo secured 57 votes, and the BJP managed 29. Two votes were rejected.
For the third notification, the NC had fielded two candidates — G S Oberoi, also known as Shammi Oberoi, and Imran Nabi Dar. The BJP, on the other hand, fielded its Jammu and Kashmir unit chief Sat Sharma.
Pandita said Oberoi got 31 votes, while Dar could only manage 21. The BJP candidate secured 32 votes. Three votes were declared invalid.
The vote tally of the BJP indicated the party got four more votes, probably from the Independent MLAs.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah congratulated the three NC candidates who got elected to the Rajya Sabha and made it clear that all party votes remained intact across the four elections, and the poll agent saw each polling slip.
“There was no cross-voting from any of our MLAs. So the questions arise — where did the four extra votes of the BJP come from? Who were the MLAs who deliberately invalidated their votes by marking the wrong preference number while voting?
“Do they have the guts to raise their hands and own up to helping the BJP after promising us their votes? What pressure or inducement helped them make this choice? Let’s see if any of the BJP’s secret team owns up to selling their souls!” Abdullah said in his post on X.
He also had a word of encouragement for the losing candidate, Imran Nabi Dar.
“We put in our best effort to get him elected, but were let down at the last moment. It’s not easy to lose a hard-fought election, but I’m confident other opportunities will open up for him soon.”
The NC on Thursday issued a whip to its MLAs to ensure their presence and cast their votes in favour of the party candidates for the polls to four seats of Rajya Sabha from Jammu and Kashmir.
People’s Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti congratulated the three National Conference candidates who won the Rajya Sabha election, and hoped they would strongly represent the people of Jammu and Kashmir and speak up for them in Parliament.
The PDP had announced support for the NC for the elections “to keep the BJP away”.
Jammu and Kashmir Congress chief, Tariq Hameed Karra, in a post on X, congratulated the National Conference for “securing three safe seats and putting up a strong fight for the fourth unsafe seat”.
J-K Peoples’ Conference chief Sajad Lone, however, described the Rajya Sabha election in Jammu and Kashmir as a “fixed match” between the ruling National Conference and the opposition BJP.
“So the BJP wins the fourth seat. As predicted — a fixed match; Axis of the evil — NC and BJP,” he said in a post on X.
Lone, the MLA from the Handwara assembly segment of north Kashmir, abstained from voting in the election. “Thank God I abstained. Imagine what my plight would have been. Now, it has been mathematically proven that it was a fixed match.”
“Why did the NC poll extra votes for candidate three. They didn’t need to. They polled 31 votes for candidate three. Only 29 votes would have sufficed, even 28, because the BJP was fighting for seat four. Who cross-voted? Whose votes were rejected? Who was hand in glove?” he asked.
The BJP, with 28 assembly members, had strategically named Sharma in the third notification. He got a crucial headstart after Lone, an erstwhile ally of the BJP-PDP government, announced that his party would abstain from the forthcoming Rajya Sabha elections.
Losing NC candidate, Imran Nabi Dar, alleged horsetrading by the BJP, saying it was evident that four MLAs had voted for Sharma after promising support to the ruling party in Jammu and Kashmir.
“The BJP did not have the numbers to win this seat. They had only 28 MLAs. How did they get 32? It is clear that horsetrading has happened,” Dar told reporters here after the poll results were declared.
He claimed that the BJP must have “bought” four votes. “Those four people had promised these votes to us. If they have any shame left, they should come forward and admit that they voted for the BJP,” Dar said.
He, however, said the party was working to “expose who all of those cross-voted”.
As soon as the results were out, National Conference supporters raised slogans in favour of their leaders, including Omar Abdullah and the victorious candidates. “Vote Chor, Gaddi Chorr” slogans were also raised during the celebrations.
BJP supporters also raised slogans in favour of their victorious candidate Sat Sharma on the Assembly lawns.
The Union territory, with four seats in Rajya Sabha, had been unrepresented in the Upper House of Parliament since February 15, 2021, the day when Ghulam Nabi Azad and Nazir Ahmed Laway finished their term.
Two other members, Fayaz Ahmed Mir and Shamsheer Singh Manhas, had completed their term on February 10, the same year.
