Rajya Sabha polls: No discussion on party’s candidates yet, says Omar

Srinagar, Sep 25: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday said that there have been no discussions within the National Conference regarding the party’s candidates for the upcoming Rajya Sabha polls scheduled for October 24.
Speaking to reporters in Reasi, Omar said that no deliberations have taken place so far within the party regarding the Rajya Sabha nominations.“You can make any news, you can put anyone’s name. The party will decide on it. As far as I know, there has been no discussion on who we will nominate,” Omar said, responding to queries about whether NC president Dr. Farooq Abdullah and former minister Sajad Kichloo were being considered as candidates.
Omar also hinted at the possibility of allocating a seat to their ally, the Congress, stating that the party will decide how many seats it will contest and how many it will allow others to contest. “There are four seats. How many seats we will contest and how many we will allow others to contest will be decided by us,” he said.
Sources said that NC president Dr. Farooq Abdullah, former minister Sajad Kichloo and the party treasurer Shammi Oberoi are the frontrunners for the party.
They indicate that chances of nomination of Choudhary Muhammad Ramzan, Aga Syed Mehmood and Ajay Sadhotra are very bleak.
Meanwhile president of the Jammu & Kashmir unit of the Congress, Tariq Hamid Karra said that the party’s high command will make the final decision regarding its strategy for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections.
Karra said, “The matter will be discussed with the party leadership, and they will examine all aspects before taking a final call.”
In the Rajya Sabha polls, the NC-Congress alliance is poised to comfortably win three out of the four seats. It is widely believed that the Congress, which has six MLAs in J&K, could seek one of the three “safe” seats.
Sources disclosed that the party may field Ghulam Ahmad Mir, MLA from Dooru, who has already been playing a role at the national level.
Mir, who was appointed as the party’s general secretary in charge of Jharkhand in December 2023, is currently serving as general secretary in charge of West Bengal. Under his leadership, the party performed well in both the assembly and Lok Sabha elections in Jharkhand, winning 16 and two seats respectively.
The party may also consider fielding a senior leader from the Jammu mainland, which was once its stronghold but failed to secure even a single assembly or Lok Sabha seat since 2014. (KNO)