District Development Council Elections: Difference of opinion in seat sharing no big deal, fielding proxy candidates an issue

Afaq Bhat
Srinagar, Nov 18: National Conference president Dr Farooq Abdullah and his son Omar Abdullah going into self-quarantine 10-days before the first phase of District Development Council (DDC) elections are slated to be held has triggered speculations that father son-duo want to remain aloof from the party cadres, who are seeking, mandate to contest these polls.
An analyst while talking to Precious Kashmir said that the National Conference is contesting the DDC polls in alliance with other parties, including Peoples Democratic Party, Peoples Conference and other political formations and NC leadership cannot take any decision unilaterally. “In the recent days few instances have come to fore where the PAGD could not develop a consensus to field a common candidate. In Beerwah, the PDP leader is contesting as an independent against the candidate of Peoples Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD). There is rift between the local NC and PDP leaders over seat sharing even in Kishtwar district,” the analyst added.
He said, “Differences of opinion among the party cadres are a part of the game but the parties that constitute an alliance fielding proxy candidates can lead to both the candidates ending up on the losing side as their votes can get divided.”
An observer said, “Farooq and Omar Abdullah won’t remain accessible to the party cadres for a week that would mean that by the time their self-isolation ends the first phase of the DDC polls would be just a few days away. Both the NC leaders during all these days have not addressed any election gathering they have stayed away from campaigning. PAGD vice-president Mehbooba Mufti is leading the charge and has been taking on the opponents head on.”
He said, “The DDC polls are a litmus test for the PAGD. If the alliance wins these polls it would mean that traditional parties in Kashmir will make a comeback, but if the PAGD fails to make any impact on the ground it will put the leaders of the alliance in a tight spot and they will have to look for other options.”
“Since the day PAGD has announced its participation in the DDC polls, the leaders of the alliance are sounding confident and are hoping that they would win with a thumping majority. They have already written off the Bharatiya Janata Party. These polls are a direct contest between the BJP and PAGD. For time being Farooq and Omar can sit in isolation and wait for things to fall in place and hope for the best,” said, a politician.