The National Conference (NC) and Congress have finalised their seat-sharing arrangement for the upcoming Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections. Congress chief Tariq Hameed Karra announced that Congress will contest 32 of the 90 Assembly seats. The National Conference will field candidates in 51 seats. Additionally, five seats will be contested in a "friendly and disciplined" manner, with one seat each allocated to the CPI (M) and the Panthers Party.
"National Conference will contest on 51 seats, Congress on 32 and we have agreed to have a friendly but disciplined contest on 5 seats. Over and above these 88 seats, we have left 1 seat for CPI (M) and 1 seat for Panthers Party," Tariq Hameed said.
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National Conference President Farooq Abdullah expressed satisfaction with the agreement, stating, “It is a matter of great happiness that we started this campaign that both of us will fight together against those forces who are trying to divide people here. The whole country and INDIA alliance was formed so that we can fight those forces who want to communalise, divide and break the country. Today we have completed the negotiations and have done coordination in a very good cordial atmosphere. Congress and the National Conference will fight the elections together.”
The announcement comes a day before the deadline for filing nominations for the first phase of elections, which will cover 24 seats. Nominations for the second and third phases will begin on August 29 and September 5, respectively. The three-phase elections for the 90-member Jammu and Kashmir assembly are scheduled for September 18, September 25, and October 1, with vote counting set for October 4.
In the last assembly elections held in 2014, when Jammu and Kashmir was a full-fledged state, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 25 seats.
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