NC had to ‘sacrifice’ many seats for alliance with Cong, says Omar

Srinagar, August 30

National Conference (NC) vice-president Omar Abdullah on Friday said the pre-poll alliance with the Congress for the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections was not an easy decision as the party had to “sacrifice” many seats it felt it had a chance to win.

During a party function at the NC headquarters, Nawa-i-Subah, Abdullah said the struggle for the “restoration of the rights” of the people of J&K was a collective fight. “This is not only our fight, but of the whole J&K. If we have to undo the wrongs done to us, it will not only benefit us but every citizen of the J&K.”

He said, “That is why we joined hands with the Congress, even as it was not an easy decision for us, (because) we had to sacrifice those seats where we knew only the NC can give a tough fight,” the NC vice-president said. However, he said the alliance with the Congress was necessary to defeat the BJP. “In many seats such as the low-lying areas of Jammu, Poonch, and Rajouri, the Congress and NC can together fight those powers. That is why we gave the Congress some seats here from the NC’s kitty,” he said.