Why were JK Congress leaders desperate for an alliance with National Conference?

New Delhi: The desperation shown by a section of Congress leaders from Jammu and Kashmir in forging an alliance with the National Conference (NC) for the upcoming assembly elections had intrigued many in the party.

It is well-known that the NC was not keen on having a tie-up with the Congress, especially in the Kashmir valley.

Its leaders, including Farooq Abdullah and his son Omar, had received positive feedback from the ground from across the valley regarding their party's chances.

NC leaders had initially suggested to Congress that they should go fight separately and then take a call after the elections.

They had cited the Punjab formula where two INDIA bloc constituents -- the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) -- contested against each other despite having an alliance in Delhi, Haryana, Goa and Gujarat.

Leaders from both Congress and AAP had then argued that by going alone in Punjab the two parties would share both the ruling and opposition space among themselves and not cede that political domain to either the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) or the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

However, Jammu and Kashmir Congress leaders insisted on a tie-up with the NC.

The grand old party also had an option of going with the People's Democratic Party (PDP), which is also a part of the INDIA bloc.

However, its leaders were not in favour of any tie-up with the PDP in view of the growing unpopularity of Mehbooba Mufti's party after its alliance with the BJP in 2015.

They argued that the people of Kashmir widely hold Mehbooba Mufti and her party responsible for the abrogation of Article 370 and also for downgrading and dividing the state into two union territories — Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.

Several Jammu and Kashmir Congress leaders were surprised to see two central leaders -- KC Venugopal and Salman Khurshid -- rush to Srinagar to meet and persuade the NC leaders to forge an alliance.

The NC had developed cold feet even after Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi drove down to the Gupkar Road residence of Farooq Abdullah to meet him and his son and push for jointly fighting the upcoming polls. The NC eventually relented due to the persistence by Congress.

As per the seat-sharing agreement, the NC will contest 51 seats, the Congress will field its candidates in 32 seats. One seat each has been allotted to the CPI(M) and the Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party (JKNPP). There will be a "friendly contest" on five seats.

Several Congress functionaries claimed that some top leaders from the erstwhile state were desperate to go with the NC to ensure their victory from their respective constituencies in the Kashmir valley. Some of them even wanted tickets for their kin.

These functionaries further claimed that the Congress party on its own would have performed better than it would in alliance.

"Rahul Gandhi is extremely popular in Jammu and Kashmir and his goodwill would have ensured substantial seats for us in both the regions. His Bharat Jodo Yatra, which culminated in Jammu and Kashmir, was a super hit in both parts," a Congress leader said.

He claimed that the BJP will be wiped out from Jammu due to issues such as unemployment, price rise and above all the deteriorating economic conditions in the region. "There is visible anger against the BJP. The people voted for the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections only due to the Hindutva plank and the Ram Temple issue. But that won't work in the assembly elections now. It was a one-time gain for the BJP in Jammu," the Congress leader added.