J-K elections: "BJP wont go ahead of 10-12 seats," says Congress' Ghulam Ahmad

Jammu (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], September 29 (ANI): As the third phase of the Jammu and Kashmir elections approaches, Ghulam Ahmad Mir, the Congress candidate from the Dooru constituency, stated on Saturday that the Bharatiya Janata Party is unlikely to secure more than 10-12 seats in Jammu.

Mir emphasized the strength of the alliance between the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKNC) and Congress, arguing that this coalition is the only viable option left with the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

"BJP will not even get a chance to be a part of the government, leave aside forming the government by their own. BJP wont go ahead of 10-12 seats. There is no other party in Jammu and Kashmir apart from the alliance of JKNC and Congress that can win 30-35 seats. So there is no other party in the UT with which BJP can form alliance to secure that many seats. The public of J&K has always taken a decisive decision and in the last phase also the public will teach them a lesson," Mir said while speaking to ANI.

Earlier, National Conference Vice President and candidate for Ganderbal and Budgam, Omar Abdullah, expressed confidence in victory of National Conference and Congress alliance in the assembly polls and the formation of the government in Jammu and Kashmir.

"They (BJP) are not contesting that many seats to get a majority on themselves. They have left a maximum number of seats in Kashmir and they won't be able to win many seats in Jammu. But, if they are indicating that they have B, C, D, and E teams here and through them, they can fool people again, I want to say that people are more aware now. The results, which are in my knowledge after the first two phases--NC and Congress will form the government here," Abdullah said.

Abdullah also questioned the BJP's motive behind ending the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir and sought answers on the benefits of making it a Union Territory. He expressed confidence in the Supreme Court and vowed to restore statehood after the elections.

"The Prime Minister is repeatedly saying that J&K will get its statehood back. So far, no one from the BJP has been able to explain to us why our statehood was taken away? What benefit did we get by making it a Union Territory? We will wait to get our statehood back after the elections... If there is any delay, we will go to the Supreme Court... and we have full faith in the court. We will definitely get our statehood," Abdullah said.

The first and second phases of the assembly polls for Jammu and Kashmir were held on September 18 and September 25, respectively. The third and final phase is scheduled for October 1, with vote counting set for October 8. (ANI)