NC- Cong alliance in J-K about perception, not seats? Omar Abdullah explains why

Former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir,Omar Abdullah said on Tuesday that the party doesn’t gain much in terms of seats by stitching an alliance with the Congress party for the upcoming assembly polls in the Union Territory. The alliance, said the National ConferenceVice President, was more about perception than numbers.

“For us, a lot of impetus for this alliance was about the perception rather than the seats. In terms of seats, NC does not gain as much from the pact as Congress does,” Abdullah said in an interview with Hindustan Times.

Jammu and Kashmir is voting for its 90-member assembly in three phases. While the first phase of voting is scheduled on September 18, the other two round will be held on September 25 and October 5.

The votes will be counted on October 8.

“Allying with Congress became almost vital for us in light of a recent high court order that struck down an Enforcement Directorate’s case against my father (Farooq Abdullah). Some of our political opponents went to town calling it evidence of an underhand deal between the BJP and NC. To convince the people that we are not hand in glove with the BJP and will go all out to defeat the party, an alliance with Congress became very important for us,” he said.

On August 14, the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh quashed the charge sheet filed against Dr Farooq Abdullah under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in the Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association (JKCA) scam. Two days later, the Election Commission of India announced the dates of assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir.

Allying with Congress became almost vital for us in light of a recent high court order.

The National Conference and the Congress have finalised the seat-sharing formula. The NC is contesting on 51 seats while the Congress will field candidates on 32 seats, respectively. There will be a friendly contest between the two on a 5 seats.