Short in arm to INDI Alliance in J&K: 5 independents likely to join NC, Cong

Jammu: The upcoming Indi alliance government in Jammu and Kashmir will be getting more stability as five of the seven independents who won elections in assembly polls are likely to join the National Conference or Congress in the coming days. Four of these candidates were denied tickets by the National Conference while one was from the Congress party who failed to secure a party mandate.
The NC, Congress and CPI(M) combine has got 49 seats in the 95-member house and with five more MLAs joining the alliance will take the tally to 54 members.
Independent candidate Payare Lal Sharma triumphed in Inderwal assembly constituency by defeating the political heavyweight Ghulam Mohammad Saroori. Payare Lal won by a 643 votes in the Inderwal assembly with INDI Alliance candidate of Congress party’s Mohd Zafarullah securing a third spot. Sharma decided to contest as an independent after the NC-Congress alliance gave the seat to Congress. Payare Lal is likely to join NC on Thursday in Srinagar.
Choudhary Mohammed Akram sprung a surprise by becoming winner in Surankote constituency. He defeated Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi’s choice Shahnawaz Chowdhary. Rahul Gandhi infact held a election rally for Shahnawaz in Surankote. Akram defeated Shahnawaz by a margin of 8,851 votes. Akram polled 34,201 votes. As per sources NC leadership is in touch with Akram and he(Akram) has decided to rejoin the party. Akram left NC after the alliance was formed and Congress leader Shahnawaz Chowdhary was declared the candidate for the alliance in Surankote Constituency.
Meanwhile, Satish Sharma who won from Chhamb assembly constituency after being denied mandate is likely to join Congress party. The party overlooked Satish and gave mandate to political heavyweight and former deputy CM Tara Chand. Tara Chand however remained third. Satish won by a margin of 6929 votes by defeating BJP candidate Rajeev Sharma. As Congress has one only one seat from Jammu region with no Hindu candidate, Satish’s joining will send a good signal from NC-Congress government to minority community.
Another independent-a Former judge Muzaffar Iqbal Khan who defeated BJP's Mohd Iqbal Malik in Thannamandi Assembly Constituency with a margin of 6,179 votes may join NC. As part of the INDIA alliance, Congress party’s Mohd Shabir Khan was given mandate who remained at fourth spot with 7,508 votes.
In Shopian Shabir Ahmad Kullay who won by defeating NC candidate by a narrow margin of 1207 votes may also join NC, while Dr Rameshwar Singh won from Bani, defeating BJP candidate and former MLA Jewan Lal by 2,048 votes is keeping cards close to his chest. Singh secured 18,672 votes, while Lal polled 16,624 votes.
The Congress was fighting the elections in a pre-poll alliance with National Conference (NC) and had fielded 32 candidates, mostly in Jammu region, compared to 51 by the regional party.

Updated On 10/10/2024 1:51:32 AM