Alliance with NC out of national compulsion: JKPCC Chief

Srinagar, Aug 31: The Congress was ready to contest all 90 seats in the J&K assembly polls on its own but the alliance with the National Conference (NC) was forged under a “national compulsion”, J&K Congress chief Tariq Hameed Karra said Saturday.

“The alliance was forged for the stability and betterment of the people of J&K,” he said.

The NC and the Congress Monday finalised a seat-share formula, with NC set to contest 51 seats and Congress 32.

"The Congress will become stronger in the future. We had some alliance compulsions, the coalition was forged under a national mood, national compulsion. If those parameters of the alliance were not followed, then the Congress was ready to contest on all 90 seats," Karra said.

He was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a function at the Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) headquarters during which former MLA Kokernag, Abdul Rahim Rather and activist Irfan Hafeez Lone joined the party.

Karra said the coalition was forged by adhering to the alliance principles.

“The alliance has been forged for stability, it has been forged by adhering to the alliance principles, and for the betterment of the people of J&K,” he said.

Asked for his comment about the situation in the BJP in Jammu, with many of its leaders resigning from the party following the distribution of tickets, the J&K Congress chief said there was a conflict of ideology in the BJP.

“That is their issue. Their conflict within is basically of ideology also. There are so many BJPs in one BJP. It is their ideological conflict. Within the BJP, they don't themselves know which ideology to follow, which leader to follow,” Karra said.