Srinagar, Apr 3 (UNI) In a setback to INDIA alliance in Jammu and Kashmir, Peoples Democratic Party President Mehbooba Mufti on Wednesday announced that the PDP will field candidates for all three Lok Sabha seats in the valley.

Mufti said 'the National Conference has left no option for PDP other than to field candidates and contest the elections'.

She told reporters in Srinagar that the party’s Parliamentary Board would take a final call on the candidates and announce the names in the coming days.

Mufti’s announcement came a day after NC Vice President Omar Abdullah suggested PDP to refrain from fielding candidates against them in the three Valley seats. NC has already announced that it would field candidates on all the three seats of Kashmir.

The PDP Chief said the need of the hour was to remain united especially after the abrogation of Article 370, but the attitude of the NC leadership was disappointing which has pushed the party to contest seats from Kashmir.

“Omar sahib during a recent presser said that PDP has no existence and Mehbooba had came at number 4 (in 2019 polls). What happened after that was that my worker who has been with me during the tough times felt insulted and disheartened….. The PDP won 28 seats and kept NC out of power twice in a few years and now they (NC) were saying that the PDP has no existence.
Omar Sahib’s language was hard and my worker felt hurt. With which face I will go to my worker and say that Omar sahib says that PDP should restrain from fielding candidates and support them. Is it so easy?” she asked.

“They (NC) have left no door open to us other than to field candidates and contest the elections," the former Chief Minister added.

Mufti said that her party would have left all the seats for NC, but unfortunately the PDP was never consulted.

"During the INDIA alliance meeting in Mumbai, I said there that since Farooq Abdullah is our senior leader, he will take a decision (on seat sharing) and will do justice. I had hoped he would keep the party interests aside. But the NC took the decision to contest all three seats in Kashmir unilaterally," the PDP President said.

Mufti said the way Omar talked yesterday, the NC leaders could have said this two months back.

"Farooq sahib could have called me or invited me stating that you have given the responsibility to me to decide and I have decided for some reasons that our representatives could do better or our party workers are not accepting and that is why we have decided to contest all three seats from the valley. ..When this was easy they did not do so. And when you make anyone the head of the family or a judge, it is the judge who should ensure justice," she said.

Reacting to Mufti’s decision, Omar Abduallh said that if PDP is contesting from three valley seats, then perhaps they don’t want any kind of alliance during Assembly polls too.

"If she has announced to field candidates on all 5 seats, it is her choice. How can I stop her,” Omar told reporters.

He said they fielded candidates on 3 seats in Kashmir based on Mufti’s formula that was done during the district development council polls.
“For DDC polls, we suggested to them (PDP) that candidates be announced on the basis of 2019 Parliamentary polls and they didn’t accept that. The PDP said that the candidates will be announced on the basis of 2014 assembly election results. And it was decided that whichever party had won, they contested the DDC polls. And the same formula was adopted during the Parliamentary polls,” Omar said.
The NC Vice President said that they had told PDP that they had kept the alliance option open for the assembly election as there was nothing much in the three parliament seats of the valley.

“…If Mehboobaji has decided to field her own candidates on five seats, then perhaps she does not want any kind of alliance even for the assembly elections. We kept the door open, now if she has closed the door then it is not our fault..." he said.
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