Farooq chairs meeting to confront ‘Lone’ challenge in North Kashmir

Srinagar, March 14

Former National Conference legislators and leaders from North Kashmir assembled at the NC headquarters in Nawai Subha, where they briefed party chief Farooq Abdullah about the developments in the North Kashmir Lok Sabha constituency.

The sitting MP of National Conference from the constituency, Akbar Lone, is unwell and unlikely to contest from the region. While the Jammu and Kashmir People’s Conference (JKPC) has decided to contest polls from the area, fielding its chairman Sajad Gani Lone, the NC is yet to decide on its candidate for the constituency. Sources say many party leaders from North Kashmir are showing interest to contest from the seat.

There are six Lok Sabha constituencies in Jammu and Kashmir. In the 2014 general elections, the NC had won three seats in Kashmir, including the North Kashmir seat spreading over three districts, and the BJP won two seats in Jammu and one seat in Ladakh.

An NC statement said Farooq chaired a meeting of North Kashmir Parliamentary constituency functionaries, addressing crucial issues concerning the constituents. “The segment leaders were urged to prepare diligently for the forthcoming elections. During the meeting, distinguished party members discussed an array of issues and offered their valuable insights and suggestions to further strengthen the party’s position on the ground,” the NC said.

A party leader said Abdullah asked them to prepare for the upcoming parliamentary elections. He added that the party chief stated that people across J&K had overwhelming faith in the leadership of the National Conference and the party should reinforce that faith through an outreach campaign.