Omar Abdullah defends NC-Congress coalition

Srinagar, Sep 22: The National Conference’s pre-poll alliance with the Congress for the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections was formed to give people an option to avoid a hung House, party vice-president Omar Abdullah said on Sunday.

According to the seat-share agreement, the National Conference is contesting 51 seats, the Congress 32 and the CPI(M) one. The remaining six seats will witness a “friendly contest” between the Congress and the National Conference.

Abdullah — who spoke to reporters at a Shikara rally in the Dal lake in support of the party’s Zadibal candidate Tanvir Sadiq — said, “Maybe they have something which allows them to see what has gone into the machines, we don’t know what has gone into the machines. What we have heard from the people, there is no room for hung elections.”

“We could have gone for a post-poll alliance but the alliance has been formed (before elections) to give people an option so that there is no hung assembly and there is no room for doubt that a government will not be formed,” he added.

Abdullah also claimed that the BJP would want a hung assembly as it would give it an excuse to extend the lieutenant governor’s rule.

“The BJP will want to have a hung assembly so that they get an excuse to prolong the (lieutenant) governor’s rule but people won’t allow it to happen,” he said.

Asked why top BJP leaders were not campaigning in Kashmir as much as they were in Jammu, the former chief minister said the saffron party was aware that it would not get anything from the Valley.

“The BJP has nothing in Kashmir, it won’t get anything from Kashmir. We are also well aware of the BJP’s attitude towards Muslims. Sixteen per cent population of the country is Muslim and they (BJP leaders) could not find even one who would be good enough to be made a minister at the Centre. When there is no representation for this population, we know what kind of thinking they have towards Muslims,” Abdullah said.

The National Conference leader further alleged that the BJP was harping on the “rule of three families” in Jammu and Kashmir to hide its failures.

“Jammu and Kashmir has got nothing in the past five years. The BJP has nothing to show. So the prime minister and the home minister are forced to target the three families. If they had done something, they would not need to do this,” he added.

Abdullah also said the government should give a thought to the lower voter turnout this year compared to the 2014 assembly elections in some areas of Kashmir.

“There were some areas where the voting percentage was lower than in 2014. For example, in the Noorabad (now D H Pora) segment, there was 80 percent turnout in 2014 but this time it was 20 per cent lower (68 per cent). The present government has to think about why it has happened this time despite there being no boycott and everything, according to them, is normal,” he said.

Asked about Rahul Gandhi’s visit to Kashmir on Monday, Abdullah said it was good and suggested that the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha make a couple more visits to take on the BJP.

“It is good that Rahul Gandhi is coming. I would want him to come more often to take on the BJP top brass. The prime minister has visited twice, the home minister has visited thrice, (Defence Minister) Rajnath Singh is not tired of visiting, and other senior BJP leaders are coming. Rahul Gandhi should come to boost the morale of party cadres wherever Congress candidates are contesting,” Abdullah said.