National Conference decides to go solo inJ&K

The National Conference (NC) has decided to contest all three Lok Sabha seats in the Kashmir Valley on its own, even as there have been discussions with the Congress to decide on the three seats of Jammu and Ladakh regions. This will pit the NC and the Peoples Democratic Party, the Valley’s two major mainstream parties, against each other. This also places a major question mark over the People’s Alliance for the Gupkar Declaration (PAGD), an alliance of political parties in the Valley that was formed in 2020 to fight for the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status. While the Congress would support NC candidates in Baramulla and Srinagar, it would most likely support Mehbooba Mufti if she decides to contest from Anantnag, a seat she has represented in the past, just like her father and PDP founder Mufti Mohammad Sayeed.