Leh/Kargil: In first ever elections after Ladakh was carved a Union Territory out of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, the National Conference and the Congress have scored big in the Autonomous Hill Development Council of Kargil pushing the ruling Bhartiya Janta Party to a distant fourth position as independent candidates fared ever better.
In a 30-member Hill Development Council which puts 26 seats to direct elections and reserves four for nominations by the government, the National Conference has emerged the single largest party by winning 12 seats and the Congress has secured ten seats. The Bhartiya Janta Party could win only two seats while an equal number has gone to the independent candidates.
In the previous Council also the National Conference had 12 seats, the Congress had nine, the BJP had two and four were held by the independent candidates.
The National Conference, clearly headed to retain the Council together with the Congress, fought a long battle reaching to the Supreme Court to secure its election symbol which the Union Territory administration had disallowed despite two orders from the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
On 10 of the 26 seats, contest was directly between National Conference and the Congress, pushing the BJP to a third or fourth position. Despite a contest between National Conference and the Congress, though friendly, the BJP could win only two seats and finish runner up on only on three seats. On the remaining seats, the contest of National Conference and the Congress was against independent candidates.
This was a high stake election for the BJP, both ideologically and in terms of its impact on the Union Territory politics. The BJP was projecting the election as an approval of its policies on Ladakh following separation from Jammu and Kashmir. Big loss for the BJP could also impact its prospects in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The Ladakh Lok Sabha seat is currently held by the BJP. BJP had campaigned intensively drawing some union ministers and top party leaders.
BJP MP Jamyang Tsering Namgyal said that National Conference’s symbol of plough on the red base has been erased permanently from Ladakh. Responding to Namgyal, Omar Abdullah had said that the NC symbol was etched on the hearts of people.
BJP’s star candidate and former Member of Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Council, Haji Anayat Ali, also lost his election. Anayat, a former leader of the People’s Democratic Party, was also Chairman of the J&K Legislative Council from March 2015 till the Upper House was abolished in 2019. In a high political development symbolising shutting down of NC and PDP in Ladakh, Haji Anayat had joined the BJP on August 26, 2019 -twenty days after striking down of Article 370.
Reacting to the results, National Conference vice President Omar Abdullah said that the verdict was a message which undertook unilateral decisions on the fate of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
Writing a long post on the X, formerly twitter, Omar Abdullah said, “The BJP was dealt a resounding defeat at the hands of the NC-Congress alliance in Kargil today. In celebration of our strong alliance with the Congress party, the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference is delighted to announce its victory in the LAHDC Kargil elections. This result sends a message to all forces and parties that have, undemocratically and unconstitutionally, divided the state of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh without the consent of its people.
“This victory belongs to the people of Zanskar, Kargil, and Drass, who have decisively endorsed the National Conference-Congress alliance. We extend our heartfelt congratulations to all the elected councillors, recognizing their dedication to serving the people. We also extend our gratitude to the leadership of the Congress party for their unwavering support.
“These election results should serve as a wake-up call for the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is time to cease hiding behind the Raj Bhawan and unelected representatives and, instead, acknowledge the people’s rightful desire for a democratically elected government in Jammu and Kashmir. Democracy demands the voices of the people be heard and respected.
“We also take this opportunity to extend our sincere appreciation to our dedicated party workers who toiled day and night, persevering through challenging conditions, to ensure that on the day of reckoning, the JKNC flag would soar high.
“JKNC remains committed to the principles of democracy, justice, and unity, working tirelessly to uphold the rights and aspirations of the people of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh.”
Below is the detailed election analysis
Ranbirpora – Abdul Samad of the Indian National Congress defeats sitting Councillor Mubarak Shah Naqvi of the National Conference by a margin of 575 votes. Samad polled 1949 votes against 1374 of Mubarak Shah. BJP’s Fayaz Ahmed Qadri got only 545 votes.
Bimbhat – Abdul Wahid of National Conference defeats Talib Hussain of Congress by a narrow margin of 52 votes. Wahid polled 1947 votes against 1895 of Hussain. Asgar Shah, an independent, got 743 votes.
Shargole – Mohd Jawad of the Indian National Congress polled 1978 votes as he defeated Mohd Ali Chandan of BJP by 65 votes. Chandan bagged 1913 votes, while Stanzin Tarpoo, the third candidate in the fray, an independent, polled 37 votes.
Pashkum – Kacho Mohammad Feroz of the Indian National Congress retains the constituency by defeating Mohammad Ali, an independent candidate, with margin of 350 votes.Kacho Feroz polled 1756 votes against 1406 of Ali. Ahmed Hussain of Aam Aadmi Party gets only 130 votes.
Tai Suru – Abdul Hadi of Indian National Congress polls defeats sitting Councillor Syed Abbas of National Conference with a margin of 261 votes. Hadi polled 1717 votes against 1456 of Abbas.
Parkachik – Agha Ainul Huda of the Indian National Congress created history by winning the seat with highest ever margin in the Kargil Hill Development Council elections. Huda polled 2165 votes and registered a victory margin of 1128 votes over his rival in a direct contest. Independent candidate Ghulam Mohammad, who polled 1037 votes, was currently representing the Parkachik constituency.
Karsha – Stanzin Jigmet of Indian National Congress retains the constituency by defeating Rigzin Tsewang of BJP. Jigmet polled 1509 votes against 1430 of Tsewang.
Padum – Punchok Tashi of National Conference retains the seat by defeating BJP candidate Skalzang Wangyal by a narrow margin of 54 votes. Tashi polled 1745 votes against 1691 of Wangyal.
Cha – Stanzin Lakpa of BJP retains the seat by polling 798 votes against 564 of Congress candidates Tenzin Sonam.
Chuliskambo – Altaf Hussain of National Conference retains the seat by defeating Reyaz Ahmed Khan, an independent candidate. Hussain polled 1480 votes against 1173 of Khan. Khadija Bano of National Conferences secured 716 votes to stand third.
Kargil Town – Haji Abbas Adulpa of National Conference retains the Kargil town constituency with an impressive margin of 1285 votes over his Congress rival Mohammad Hussain. While Adulpa polled 1953 votes, Hussain got 668 votes. Mohammad Raza, an independent candidate, got 188 votes.
Poyen – Mohammad Amin of National Conference retains the constituency with a margin of 360 votes. He defeated Haji Anayat Ali, a high profile candidate representing the BJP. Amin polled 1322 votes against 962 of Haji. Haji Anayat Ali, formerly a PDP leader, was the chairman of the Legislative Council from March 2015 till the Upper House of Jammu and Kashmir legislature was abolished in October 2019. He had quit PDP to join BJP 20 days after abrogation of Article 370.
Yourbaltak – Manzoor Ul Hussain of the National Conference wins by a margin of 90 votes defeating sitting Councillor and independent candidate Kacho Ahmed Ali Khan. Hussain received 1452 votes against 1362 of Khan. BJP candidate Mohammad Hassan Pasha was pushed to third place securing only 439 votes.
Silmoo – Feroz Ahmed Khan of National Conference retains Silmoo constituency with a margin of 973 votes over his Congress rival Mohammad Ali Khan who scored 665 votes. BJP candidate Regzen Gutmath secured 553 votes. Feroz Khan, who polled 1638 votes, is the current Chief Executive Councillor and has earlier been elected as MLA from Zanskar in 2008 and was also a Minister in Omar Abdullah government.
Choskore – Nasir Hussain Munshi of the Indian National Congress polls 1447 votes to retain the constituency with a margin of 434 votes. Munshi defeated Mohammad Raza do the National Conference who polled 1013 votes. BJP’s Bashir Ahmed could secure only 174 votes.
Trespone – Syed Mujtaba of the National Conference retains the constituency by defeating Nawaz Ali, an independent candidate, with margin of 186 votes. Mujtaba polled 1292 votes against 1106 of Ali. Ahmed Hussain, another independent candidate, polled 750 votes.
Gund Mangalpur – Syed Ali, an independent candidate, wins by securing 1313 votes against 978 of his nearest rival Mohammad Abbas of the Congress. Syed Mehdi, another independent candidate, who had currently held this constituency, secured 418 votes. Mohammad Ali, another independent got 72 votes while Nasir Hussain of BJP got 67 votes.
Saliskut – Mohammad Sajjad of the National Conference wins with a margin of200 votes by polling 1144 votes against 944 of his nearest rival Syed Hassan of the Congress, a sitting Councillor. Ahmed Hussain of BJP polled as meagre as 66 votes.
Lankerchey – Ghulam Hyder of National Conference retains the seat with a margin of 416 votes. He bagged 1203 votes against 786 of Mohammad Sadiq of the Congress. Syed Shamsuddin, an independent candidate, got 289 votes, while Mansoor Hussain of BJP was pushed to fourth place securing only 127 votes.
Thangdumbur – Ashiq Ali of National Conference wins with an impressive margin of 1124 votes. Ali polled 1643 votes against 519 of BJP’s Mohammad Ali.
Thasgam Thuina – Dr Mohammad Jaffar Akhone of National Conference wins with a margin of 94 votes by polling 1405 votes. He defeated his nearest rival Sheikh Mohammad Hussain of the Congress who secured 1311 votes. Independent candidate Akhone Safdar Ali got 195 votes while Mohammad Hussain of Aam Aadmi Party finished with a paltry 53 votes.
Barsoo – Ghulam Mohammad, an independent candidate, retains seat with a margin of 228 votes. Mohammad, who polled 1411 votes, defeated Ghulam Abbas Wazir of the Congress who secured 1183 votes. Abdul Hani of BJP got only 51 votes.
Shakar – Zakir Hussain of the Indian National Congress retains the constituency with a margin of 338 votes. Hussain polled 1339 votes against 1001 of Kacho Shameem Ahmed Khan, and independent candidate.
Chiktan – Liyaqat Ali Khan of the Indian National Congress defeats the sitting Councillor Mohsin Ali of BJP by 361 votes. Khan polled 850 votes against 489 of Mohsin Ali. Niyaz Hussain, an independent candidate, got 433 votes.
Stakchay Khangral – Padma Dorjey of the BJP defeats Congress candidate Syed Hussain by 177 votes. Dorjey polled 1007 against 830 of Hassan. National Conference candidate Ghulam Hussain secures 479 votes. (Agencies)
