'Rahul should focus on Jammu': Omar Abdullah upset with election ally Congress campaign strategy

Moments after voting in the second phase of the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections on Wednesday, National Conference vice-president and party candidate from Ganderbal and Budgam Omar Abdullah advised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to focus his party's campaign in the Kashmir region. Focus on gyms instead.

Both the National Conference and the Congress are in a pre-poll alliance for the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections, with the NC contesting 51 seats and the Congress 32.

Abdullah said that the role of Congress party is least important in Kashmir but important in Jammu. He added that the party, however, has made little effort in campaigning in the Jammu region and has failed to live up to the expectations of the alliance.

“I hope that after Rahul campaigns for one or two seats in Kashmir, he will focus on Jammu. Ultimately what Congress does in Kashmir is not important. What Congress does in Jammu is important. “Unfortunately, the Congress has not done as much as we expected them to do in the Jammu plains,” Abdullah said after voting in the second phase of the polls.

The possible jolt to the NC-Congress alliance comes even as polling for the second phase of JK elections is underway.

Congress campaign in Jammu not yet started: Abdullah

He added that most of the seats in the Jammu region were given to the Congress party under the terms of the alliance. “As of now, the Congress campaign in Jammu is yet to begin and only five days of campaigning are left,” he said.

He urged Rahul Gandhi to focus on the Jammu region to strengthen the chances of the NC-Congress alliance in the ongoing assembly elections.

The Jammu and Kashmir elections have become a prestige battle for Abdullah, the NC candidate from Ganderbal. The NC leader, who is still reeling from defeat in the recently held Lok Sabha elections, is trying to recapture the family stronghold of Ganderwal.

Abdullah J. on foreign delegates observing the election

Abdullah on Wednesday criticized the Center's move to invite foreign delegates to observe the ongoing assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir, saying the elections were an internal matter of India.

“I don't know why foreigners are asked to check elections here. When foreign governments comment, the Indian government says 'this is India's internal matter' and now suddenly they want foreign observers. Come and see our elections,'' Abdullah said.

A delegation of diplomats from various countries arrived at a polling station in Bimina area of ​​Srinagar to witness the celebration of democracy in Jammu and Kashmir.

Voting in the three-phase assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir began on September 18. The second phase is currently underway, with the third phase polling scheduled to take place on October 1. The Election Commission said that the counting of votes will take place on October 8. .