Ganderbal was once the bastion of the Abdullah family but this time around, the electoral battle in this north Kashmir assembly constituency is being fought sans the Abdullah’s.
Omar Abdullah has decided to contest the election from 2 assembly segments of Sonwar in capital Srinagar and Beerwah in central Kashmir Budgam district.
The National Conference this time has fielded a local as its candidate from the constituency which goes to polls in the first phase on November 25.
This is for the first time since 1975 that the Abdullah’s have not fielded any candidate from their family in the constituency.
It is believed the Omar quitting from the constituency has given some psychological edge to Peoples Democratic Party whose candidate, Qazi Mohammad Azal made history in 2002 by defeating Omar. The defeat was, however, avenged by Omar in 2008 when he won as the NC chief ministerial candidate by defeating Qazi.
NC this time chose to field Sheikh Ashfaq Jabbar, who fought against Omar in 2008 as a Congress candidate.
But the NC candidate is confident of his win from the constituency.
Omar Abdullah visited the constituency to campaign for the party candidate last week. Omar said the ‘decision to field Sheikh Ashfaq Jabbar was not taken under pressure’.
“Today I am seeking your votes for Ashfaq, who is the first non-Abdullah candidate of NC from Ganderbal. The way you ensured the victory of my grandfather, Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, my father Dr Farooq Abdullah and me, you have to ensure victory of Ashfaq,” Omar urged the rally.
The chief minister said Ganderbal will continue to remain in his heart and he was hopeful that Ashfaq would carry forward his mission and vision about the district.
The PDP president Mehbooba Mufti who campaigned for Qazi said that Ganderbal has once again ‘created history by making Omar Abdullah leave the constituency even before a vote was cast’.
"Ganderbal has in fact announced the result of entire state by making Omar Abdullah, head of the outgoing government, to run away from here in pursuit of a safe seat,” she said.
Mehbooba said Omar Abdullah during his election campaign in 2008 had made tall promises while seeking votes. “Didn’t he promise youth of recruitment to the police, jobs to even undergraduates, and cheap gas? What has happened to those promises?” the PDP president said.
Mehbooba said the PDP during its brief stint in the government took some major development initiatives in the area. “Ganderbal first time saw what a representative looks like and how it feels to have a common man representative of the people,” she said.
The party patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed also addressed a poll rally in the town.
The poll scene in the constituency is poised to be of interest even without the Abdullah’s, with NC and PDP being the main contestants. The contest seems to be neck to neck and it remains to be seen if Qazi repeats his 2002 performance.
“It is a close contest and the either of the two leading contenders, Ashfaq and Qazi can win the seat,” said Abdul Rashid a local businessman in Ganderbal.
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