The results of Jammu & Kashmir Assembly elections show the glaring political divide between the Jammu region and the Valley. As expected, the BJP made major gains in Jammu region where it more than doubled its tally and vote-share, but the lotus failed to bloom in the Valley. Similarly, the PDP remained confined to the Valley and could win just three seats in the Jammu region.
The results stunned the Congress as its total tally in the State was reduced to 12 seats. Riding high on the pro-Modi wave in Jammu region, the BJP trampled rival Congress candidates reducing it to its lowest ever tally of only 5 seats in the region. Several heavyweights of the Congress, including Deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand, Housing Minister Raman Bhalla and PHE, Irrigation and Flood Control Minister Sham lal Sharma lost their seats in Jammu region. The BJP won all of its 25 candidates — 14 more than its previous tally of 11 seats in the Jammu region.
The Congress won only two seats from erstwhile Doda district, two from Reasi and one seat from Poonch district while it was completely washed out from other districts of Jammu region. The party could not open its account in Kathua, Samba, Rajouri, Udhampur, Jammu districts.
Chairman of the Congress election campaign committee Ghulam Nabi Azad faced piquant situation in his home district as BJP won four Assembly segments of Doda, Kishtwar, Bhaderwah and Ramban defeating sitting Ministers of the ruling alliance. Despite attracting huge crowds in his election meetings, Azad magic failed to rescue party candidates.
The National Conference and the Peoples Democratic Party won three seats each in Jammu region while one independent candidate from Udhampur, a dissident from the BJP, romped home comfortably. Close aide of Omar Abdullah and NC’s provincial president DS Rana wrested Nagrota Assembly seat from the BJP.
Rana, in his maiden contest defeated Nand Kishore, younger brother of BJP MP from Jammu and state party chief Jugal Kishore Sharma by a margin of over 4,000 votes. The NC surprised poll pundits by clinching a big victory from Bisnah Assembly segment in Jammu district. NC’s Kamal Verma defeated sitting legislator Ashwani Sharma of the BJP.
Though the BJP fell short of its target and own expectations but still it recorded its highest ever vote share of 23 per cent in the Assembly polls, higher than the PDP which emerged victorious on 28 Assembly seats and became the single largest party across the State.
Between 2008 and 2014, the BJP added over 6.12 lakh votes to its kitty. In 2008, the BJP had garnered 4.93 lakh votes winning 11 Assembly seats riding high on the crest of Amarnath land row in Jammu region. Statistics released by the Election Commission of India website revealed the BJP secured 11.07 lakh votes (23 percent) in 2014 Assembly polls in the State.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who led the BJP campaign from the front to achieve its Mission 44 plus, resurrected the disoriented State party unit during the aggressive campaign with help from party chief Amit Shah
Jammu & Kashmir Panthers party was completely wiped out of the electoral scene. Three of its sitting legislators were defeated by rival candidates with healthy margin of votes. Harsh Dev Singh, three-time MlA from Ramnagar was defeated by RS Rathania while Balwant Singh Mankotia was defeated by Independent candidate Pawan Gupta from Udhampur. Yash Paul Kundal lost Samba at the hands of rival BJP candidate.
In the Valley, many heads rolled on Tuesday as people gave a complex verdict with overall edge to the PDP and a humiliating rout to the NC. Though both major parties faced unexpected wins and losses, the Congress fared well in the Valley and ladakh while Sajjad lone’s People’s Conference (PC) emerged as new political force winning two seats in northern Kupwara district. Surprisingly, CPI(M)’s MY Tarigami and Awami Ittihad Party’s Engineer Rashid retained their Kulgam and langate constituencies.
The NC faced the biggest upset at Sonawar constituency of Srinagar where Chief Minister Omar Abdullah resides and contested from. He lost to PDP’s low-key member of the Upper House Muhammad Ashraf Mir. However, Abdullah was lucky to win from central Kashmir’s Beerwah constituency where he had also contested after leaving his traditional Ganderbal bastion. Surprisingly, the NC’s Sheikh Ishfaq Jabbar won the Ganderbal seat rather comfortably.
The PDP won the highest ever number of 25 seats from the Valley. The party patron Mufti Muhammad Sayeed won the Anantnag constituency while his party swept all six seats in Pulwama and Shopian districts.
The PDP shook the NC’s castle by felling some stalwarts. Former Finance Minister Abdur Rahim Rather’s 37-year grip on the Char-e-Sharief constituency ended as PDP’s Ghulam Nabi Hanjoora halted his sixth straight win. likewise, Kafilur Rahman lost Karnah constituency to PDP’s political novice Raja Manzoor. Rahman had retained the seat thrice in the past.
However, the most upsetting for the NC is the loss of five seats in capital Srinagar, once thought to be the impregnable fortress of the party. The NC only retained party general secretary Ali Mahammd Sagar’s Khanyar, Speaker Mubarak Gul’s Eidgah and Shamima Firdous’s Habba Kadal constituency. The other five seats-Batamaloo, Amira Kadal, Hazratbal, Zadibal and Sonawar were snatched by the PDP. Observers say that winning bulk of Srinagar seats would increase acceptability of the PDP in the urban segment where it had few takers in the past.
The NC won 12 seats in the Valley, the lowest ever in any election held since 1975. The party retained Budgam (Aga Ruhullah), Kangan (Mian Altaf Ahmad), Sonawari (Muhammad Akbar lone) and Gurez ( Nazir Ahmad Gurezi). It threw major surprise by winning Homeshalibugh and Pahalgam constituencies, which were previously held by the PDP. The NC veteran Muhammad Shafi won Uri segment in north Kashmir upstaging Congress leader and Minister Taj Mohiuddin.
In another biggest upset, Ghulam Hassan Mir of the Democratic Party (Nationalist), who was consistently winning from Gulmarg since 2002, was routed by PDP’s Abbas Wani. Mir’s stars were revolving ever since his name surfaced in a controversy that he was in league with the Army to topple Omar Abdullah Government in the aftermath of 2010 summer agitation in Kashmir.
The Sajjad lone’s and his colleague Bashir Ahmad Dar’s victory from Handwara and Kupwara segments is one of the major political developments of the day. Sajjad was a former separatist, who quit the camp in 2008 and joined the mainstream politics, going back to his slain father Abdul Gani lone’s origins. lone may emerge as an important player in forging future alliance in J&K.
The Congress won Bandipora, Devsar and Sopore segments quite unexpectedly though its dependable candidates Taj Mohiuddin and Ghulam Ahmad Mir (Dooru) lost. At Devsar, Muhammad Amin Bhat dealt a crushing blow to the PDP by knocking down deputy speaker Sartaj Madni. The Congress also fared exceptionally well in ladakh winning Kargil, leh and Nubra segments. The party successfully limited the ingress of BJP in the region. The Zanaskar seat in ladakh was won by NC-backed independent candidate Syed Baqir Rizvi. Nawang Rizin Jora posted his straight third win from leh constituency defeating his lone rival BJP’s Chering Dorje convincingly.
CPI(M) legislator MY Tarigami saved his Kulgam seat much like he did in 2008. He took away the segment, once known as Jamaat-e-Islami bastion by a margin of 83 votes. Tarigami is representing Kulgam since 1996.
Hakim Yasin also retained his Khansahib constituency while AIP’s Engineer Rashid continued to represent langate segment in north Kashmir. Rashid gained popularity by highlighting crucial political issues on mainstream forums and living a reasonably simple and honest lifestyle.