Srinagar, Oct 08: National Conference emerged victorious in Gurez Constituencyof North Kashmir’s Bandipora district, the only seat in Kashmir where the Bharatiya Janata Party had placed high hopes.
Despite an intense campaign by the BJP, led by senior leaders including Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, NC candidate Nizar Ahmed Khan defeated his BJP rival Faqeer Mohammad Khan by over 1,100 votes after five rounds of counting.
The BJP viewed Gurez, reserved for Scheduled Tribes (ST), as a crucial constituency to make inroads into the Kashmir Valley. Despite expanding the ST category and increasing reservation quotas to 20%, the BJP failed to secure any ST seats in the valley.
Expressing gratitude to people Nizar Ahmed Khan said that his victory was not only personal but also a significant defeat for the BJP.
“The people have decisively rejected the BJP’s propaganda and personal attacks against me,” he said, adding that the voters delivered a strong message to the BJP about its irrelevance in the constituency.
The people saw through their tactics.Their efforts to manipulate the voters failed to materialize, Khan said.
He assured voters that the NC would work to address public issues despite the limited powers available under the current government structure.
