Though Farooq Abdullah and National Conference claimed to have reached consensus for pre-poll alliance on three Lok Sabha seats and friendly contests on other three seats but the seat sharing agreement in itself is an indication that NC President Farooq Abdullah a three time former Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Gh Nabi Azad another former Chief Minister have sealed a deal for securing their own individual interests but not the organizational interests of their parties. While Farooq Abdullah has choosen to seek no opposition to his personal candidature from Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency, the Congress veteran and leader of the opposition in Rajaya Sabha Gh Nabi Azad has grabbed the opportunity to deny his old political critic and rival Tariq Hameed Karra an opportunity to contest Lok Sabha elections as a congress candidate against Farooq Abdullah from Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency. While people still remember that Farooq Abdullah lost to Tariq Hammed Karra as PDP candidate in 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the Congress veteran Gh Nabi Azad can’t forget the criticism and huge challenges Tariq Hameed Kara posed to him as PDP minister of the Congress –PDP coalition government when he (Azad) was chief minister of the state. So Farooq and Azad found a common meeting ground to keep Karra and also state Congress President Gh Ahmad Mir a leader of anti-Azad faction of the Congress party out of political reckoning in the ensuing Lok Sabha elections.
Farooq and Azad found a common meeting ground to keep Karra and also state Congress President Gh Ahmad Mir a leader of anti-Azad faction of the Congress party out of political reckoning in the ensuing Lok Sabha elections.
To take the avenge of his 2014 Lok Sabha election defeat from Tariq Hameed Karra Farooq Abdullah blocked the way of Karra to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha election and Congress veteran Gh Nabi Azad a former Chief Minister Gh Nabi Azad ceased the opportunity to spoil the political ambitions of Karra in the ensuing Lok Sabha elections and also block the way of his own party’s state president Gh Ahmad Mir an opportunity to contest the ensuing Lok Sabha elections from Anantnag Lok Sabha constituency as NC had announced its support to Mir in the previous by election for Anantnag Lok Sabha constituency which was countermanded by the Election Commission due to hostile security atmosphere in the end. Interestingly Gh Ahmad Mir is one of the top leaders of anti-Azad faction in the state unit of the Congress party. In this whole political drama National Conference is the big looser as the party has almost surrendered its claims over the two Lok Sabha seats of Jammu region and the same could heavily damage its poll prospects in the forthcoming assembly elections which may be held immediately after Lok Sabha polls in May this year or in September after the end of annual amaranth Yatra. So by all standards of understandabilities Farooq Abdullah for securing his own fate in the ensuing Lok Sabha elections from Srinagar has preferred to leave his party cadres demoralized in the entire Jammu region where from he could field two candidates of his own party. Securing self interests at the cost of party interests shows that political morality has lost its credence in Jammu & Kashmir state.
