by Yawar Hussain
SRINAGAR: Raising the banner of Peoples Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) throughout Jammu and Kashmir, the Gupkar Declaration signatories failed to find friendly ground in central Kashmir’s Budgam district for the District Development Council elections.
With alliance not materializing in Budgam, the PAGD fought each other employing every tool in the box.
However, on Tuesday, the National Conference (NC) emerged as the major winner in the district by winning eight seats out of total of 14 seats.
The Peoples Democratic Front (PDF) lost on two important segments from their bastion of Khansahib while the Peoples Democratic Party officially won only one seat in the district.
The PDP’s District President Budgam Nazir Ahmad Khan, who contested independently, has won his own seat along with bagging the seat of another supported candidate in the district.
Officially, the PAGD has won on 10 seats in the district while the PDF and independents have won on two seats each.
The Bharatiya Jantata Party and Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party were nowhere in the fray in the district.
Budgam district which has five assembly constituencies, had two MLAs each from PDP and NC in 2014 assembly polls while the Peoples Democratic Front had won one seat.
The Charar-i-Sharief assembly constituency has three DDC segments—Pakherpora, Surasyar and Nagam (Reserved for Women)—of which the NC has won all.
In 2014 assembly polls, the PDP’s Ghulam Nabi Lone Hanjura had wrested the seat by defeating the six-time NC lawmaker and former minister Abdul Rahim Rather. However, today, Hanjura’s son, Gowhar Nabi Lone has been defeated by NC’s Nazir Ahmad Jahara by 1816 votes.
While Junior Lone polled 4078 votes, his NC rival bagged 5894 votes.
In Nagam DDC segment, Afrooza Jan of NC polled 4408 against Jamila Akhter (Independent) who polled 1324. The winning margin was 3084 votes.
In Pakherpora segment, Bashir Ahmad Dar of the NC defeated Mohammad Akber Dar of the PDP by 1540 votes. Bashir polled 2294 votes while Akber polled 754 votes.
The main Charar-i-Sharief town didn’t vote in these elections as it already has an elected municipal body headed by Congress party.
In Khansahib assembly constituency, represented in last three elections by Peoples Democratic Front Chairman Hakeem Mohammad Yaseen, the NC has made in-roads by winning on two out of three DDC segments.
In Khansahib DDC segment, Bashir Ahmad Bhat of NC defeated the NC Bilal Ahmad Wani of PDF by securing 6778 votes against Wani’s 5242. The margin between the candidates was 1536 votes.
The NC also won the Parnewa DDC segment of Khansahib assembly constituency by a huge margin of 5665 votes. NC’s Sayika Akhter polled 9708 against PDF’s Nageena Akhter who bagged 4043 votes.
PDF only won Sukhnag DDC segment in the constituency with Rozia Bano trouncing PDP’s Abida Bano in the women reserved seat.
In Beerwah DDC segment of Beerwah assembly constituency, the PDP District President Nazir Ahmad Khan won by a huge margin but as an independent candidate against the NC candidate Mohammad Ashraf Lone.
Khan had unsuccessfully contested 2019 Parliament and 2014 Assembly elections, against NC’s President Farooq Abdullah and NC Vice President Omar Abdullah respectively.
He walked out of the PAGD after not being awarded mandate in the DDC election alleging that Omar Abdullah was “detrimental” to PAGD. He, however, didn’t quit the PDP.
In Khag DDC segment, Nisar Ahmad Sheikh an independent, supported by Khan has defeated another National Conference’s candidate Rayees-ul-Haq by just 33 votes.
Sheikh polled 1945 votes against 1910 votes of Haq.
However, in Narbal segment of Beerwah assembly segment, the NC’s Riyaz Ahmad Rather has defeated Zahoor Ahmad, an independent by 947 votes. Rather polled 2166 votes against 1219 of Ahmad.
In Ratsun, Khurshid Ahmad Sheikh of PDF won against Sonaullah Dar of the PDP by just 84 votes.
Shiekh polled in 3330 votes while Dar polled 3246 votes.
The Chadoora DDC segment in Chadoora assembly constituency has been won by the NC against PDP but with support of the Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Movement.
NC’s Insha Showket bagged 6273 votes while PDP’s Jabeena Bano secured 3399 votes.
The constituency was reserved for women.
The BK Pora segment of the Chadoora assembly constituency has been bagged by Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Movement’s Saima Jan who secured 2335 votes against Rukhsana Akhter, an independent who could manage just 982 votes. The winning margin for Jab was 1353 votes.
Pertinently, Chadoora assembly constituency has been represented thrice in the assembly by JKPM Chairman Javaid Mustafa Mir who was earlier with the PDP.
In Budgam DDC segment of the same assembly constituency, the National Conference won by a huge margin of 4479 votes.
NC’s Abdul Ahad Dar bagged 9373 votes against independent candidate Ghulam Mohi-Ud-Din Dar’s 4894 votes.
In Siobugh DDC seat, which is part of Budgam assembly constituency, the PDP’s Fayaz Ahmad Malik defeated an independent Fayaz Ahmad Mir by 858 votes.
Malik garnered 2894 votes against Mir’s 2036.
