Rajya Sabha polls will expose BJP’s real allies, says Omar

Claims BJP can’t win even one without horse trading

Srinagar, Oct 13: Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah on Monday said the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections will act as a test of political loyalties in Jammu and Kashmir, claiming that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) cannot win even a single seat without indulging in horse trading.

He said the National Conference (NC) will contest all four seats independently after the Congress decided not to field any candidate.

The CM said BJP cannot win even a single Rajya Sabha seat without indulging in horse trading, adding that the upcoming elections will reveal who truly supports the saffron party and who stands in opposition to it.

Speaking to reporters here, Abdullah said the NC had initially reserved one seat for the Congress, but the latter decided not to contest. “We had kept one seat for Congress, believing they were best positioned to win that fourth seat. However, they chose not to field a candidate,” Omar said, adding that the NC would now contest all four Rajya Sabha seats independently.

“This election will show us who stands with the BJP and who stands against it. Anyone who abstains or votes in their favour will be exposed before the people,” he said.

The Chief Minister said the BJP is two votes short of the required 30 to win the fourth seat. “They have only 28 MLAs. There’s not a single MLA beyond those 28 who have supported them last year,” he said. “If they claim victory beyond that, it will only be through money power, muscle power, or the misuse of agencies.”

Responding to the BJP’s claim that NC president Dr Farooq Abdullah was denied a mandate, Omar clarified, “Who says Dr Farooq was not given the mandate? He himself chose to step aside. No one in the party stopped him.”

He added that Dr Farooq would not contest from Budgam either, adding, “If he didn’t wish to contest a Rajya Sabha seat, he surely won’t take on an Assembly campaign.”

Calling Dr Abdullah “the tallest leader of Jammu and Kashmir”, the CM said his role remains that of a guiding light for the NC.

On the Budgam bypoll, Omar said, “No election should be taken lightly. We will put our best foot forward and leave the decision to the wisdom of the people.”

Taking a swipe at PDP president Mehbooba Mufti, Omar said he does not comment on issues he lacks knowledge about, unlike her. “Mehbooba Mufti speaks on every issue. I don’t speak about things I don’t know,” he said. “I don’t even know how much she understands about relations between India and Afghanistan.”

Fear of cross-voting derailed final push for unity

Last-ditch efforts to bring NC and Congress together for the Rajya Sabha polls failed due to disagreements over the voting conditions of independent MLAs, who are not required to disclose their votes to authorized polling agents.

Discussions between the two parties continued late into the night, following Congress’s public refusal on Sunday evening to contest the riskier seat offered by NC.

“We made it clear to the NC leadership that we cannot afford to depend on independents to vote for our candidate. We requested that they spare five of their MLAs for us and, in return, ask the independents to vote for the NC candidate contesting under the third notification, which involves a combined election,” a senior Congress leader said.

However, the proposal was reportedly rejected by NC. “The independents are not bound to show their marked ballots to anyone. If they do, their votes are liable to be cancelled. In contrast, NC MLAs, being part of a political party, are required to show their marked ballots to authorized polling agents,” the Congress leader added.

Of the 53 MLAs supporting the ruling alliance, five are independents: Satish Sharma (Minister, Chamb segment), Pyare Lal (Inderwal), Dr. Rameshwar Singh (Bani), Muzaffar Khan (Rajouri), and Choudhary Akram (Surankote).

As per election rules, independent MLAs are not required to display their marked ballots, unlike party-affiliated MLAs who must show their votes to authorized agents.

These voting conditions raised concerns within Congress about the possibility of cross-voting. “How can we rely on independents when we are not in power and are merely offering outside support?” a Congress leader questioned.