Congress list drama: Tara Chand’s exclusion amplifies debate over Chhamb, Akhnoor seats

Satish Sharma vying for Chhamb; Tara Chand ‘unwilling’ to contest from Akhnoor

Jammu: The absence of former deputy chief minister Tara Chand’s name from the Congress party’s second list of candidates for the third and crucial phase of elections on October 1 has raised many eyebrows, stirring considerable speculations about the internal fight over the selection of candidates for Chhamb and Akhnoor seats.
On Monday night, the Congress party released its second list of 19 candidates, but it notably omitted names for both the Akhnoor and Chhamb assembly constituencies within the politically significant Akhnoor sub-division.
Highly placed sources within Congress told The News Now that the party had been facing a piquant situation in Akhnoor and Chhamb assembly constituencies as Satish Sharma, son of two-time Lok Sabha member from Jammu seat late Madan Lal Sharma, is pushing hard for consideration for the Chhamb seat, which was recently de-reserved for the general category following the recent delimitation of constituencies.
Previously, Chhamb Assembly constituency was reserved for the Scheduled Caste (SC) and former Deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand won three consecutive elections from this seat in 1996, 2002, and 2008.
“Tara Chand is adamant and firm about contesting from Chhamb and is unwilling to show any flexibility and give way to Sharma despite being offered a ticket for the Akhnoor seat. Chand has expressed reluctance to move, citing his long-standing commitment to the people of Chhamb constituency,” sources said.
In contrast, the Akhnoor assembly segment has been reserved for SC candidates, and Sharma, who recently exhibited significant local support by organizing an impressive show, has made it clear that overlooking his candidature for the Chhamb seat could be detrimental and prove disastrous for the party’s in both Akhnoor and Chhamb constituencies.
“Satish Sharma, continuing his father’s legacy, has been actively working in the Chhamb segment since the demise of his father Madan Lal Sharma. Before Chhamb was reserved for SCs, it was a stronghold of the Sharma family, with Madan Lal Sharma winning assembly elections in 1983 and 1987 from the seat,” sources said.
“Chhamb, being a citadel of of Sharma family, has opened for general category and Satish Sharma is staking his claim on the legacy of his late father. A proposal has been mooted to offer Tara Chand the Akhnoor seat but the chances of its realization looks uncertain,” sources added.
Pertinently, Satish Sharma was also denied the Congress mandate during the District Development Council (DDC) elections which were held when the late Madan Lal Sharma was sick.
Sources also questioned the Congress party’s alliance with National Conference on two Kathua seats.
The Congress party’s recent alliance with the NC has also faced scrutiny. The Kathua seat, reserved for SCs, was allotted to the NC despite a significant number of Congress voters in the area. On the other hand, the Bani assembly seat, where the NC has strong support, has been allotted to 29-year-old Congress candidate Kajal Rajput. The criteria adopted for the alliance and seat distribution are “confusing and illogical”, sources said.
As per the pre-poll pact, the National Conference is contesting 51 out of the total 90 seats while Congress is fielding candidates for 32 seats. There will be a friendly contest on five seats while one seat each has been kept for CPI (M) and the Panthers Party.

Updated On 9/11/2024 12:36:25 AM