Election process over: BJP, NC get 6 distts each
Cong fails to open account in entire UT
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Feb 19: The National Conference and Congress today won the posts of chairperson and vice chairperson respectively in keenly contested election of Rajouri District Development Council (DDC), which was the last DDC to go to polls. With this, process of election for top posts of all 20 DDCs in Jammu and Kashmir has been completed.
NC leader Advocate Naseem Liaquat, DDC member from Budhal Old-B constituency was elected as chairperson of Rajouri DDC polling eight votes in the House of 14 while his rival Independent Shazia Kouser from Budhal Old-A, who was backed by BJP and Apni Party, got six votes.
Voting pattern was same for the post of vice chairman for which Congress candidate from Manjakote Shabir Khan, former Minister of State for Health and Power, was elected. His rival Iqbal Malik of BJP, DDC member from Darhal was defeated by 6-8.
Despite victory, there was cross-voting by one member of NC-Congress-PDP alliance in Rajouri DDC, who together accounted for nine votes but their both the candidates secured eight votes. NC has five members, Congress three and PDP one. On the other, BJP had three, Apni Party one and Independent one, totaling five but their candidates for the top posts managed to get six votes.
On February 13, when election for chairperson and vice chairperson of DDC Rajouri, which is ST Reserved district was deferred for want of quorum, NC member Khalid Choudhary initially didn’t join the NC-Congress-PDP alliance for the election meeting. Later, he had joined the meeting.
National Conference provincial president Devender Singh Rana, who worked hard for ensuring the party victory in three DDCs of Kishtwar, Ramban and Rajouri by uniting like-minded parties and Independents at the local level to ensure that NC bags top posts, hoped that the winners will leave no stone unturned for development of their districts.
With today’s election for chairman and vice chairman in Rajouri DDC, the election process in all 20 DDCs of Jammu and Kashmir has been completed.
BJP and National Conference have emerged largest parties in the Union Territory winning chairpersonship of six DDCs each. While BJP won all six Councils in Jammu region, NC clinched three each in Jammu and Kashmir divisions. They were followed by Independents who were elected chairpersons of three DDCs-two in Kashmir and one in Jammu-while two DDCs were secured by Altaf Bukhari-led Apni Party and one each by PDP, People’s Conference and CPM.
Congress, which ruled Jammu and Kashmir for several years, is the only major party which failed to win chairpersonship of even a single DDC in entire Jammu and Kashmir though its candidates became vice chairpersons of Kishtwar and Rajouri districts with NC support.
Political observers were of the view that PDP and Congress were the major losers in the DDC elections. The PDP which had been in power in Jammu and Kashmir twice won chairpersonship of just one DDC and came at par with People’s Conference and CPM, which have never sent more than two MLAs in the Assembly.
While the Congress didn’t have major stakes in Kashmir, it got severe drubbing at the hands of BJP in Jammu region, which once used to be strong citadel of the party. Congress had been in power in coalition with PDP and National Conference for 12 consecutive years from 2002 to 2014 but it didn’t get numbers to have its chairperson even in one DDC.
Quite significant is the victory of National Conference in three DDC after BJP’s six in Jammu as it has emerged as second major political force in the region leaving the Congress way behind.
Six DDCs whose chairmanship went to the BJP include Jammu, Samba, Kathua, Udhampur, Doda and Reasi, all in Jammu region while six districts whose chairpersonship was won by the NC are Kishtwar, Ramban and Rajouri (Jammu region), Bandipora, Ganderbal and Anantnag (Kashmir division).
Apni Party emerged victorious in Srinagar and Shopian districts while Independents secured chairpersonship of Budgam, Baramulla and Poonch districts.
PDP got Pulwama, CPM Kulgam and People’s Conference Kupwara.
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