The forming of an alliance between the Congress and the National Conference (NC) for the assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir is a significant development. A similar alliance, aimed at countering the BJP, had shown promising results in the Lok Sabha polls—the NC secured two of the three seats in Kashmir, while the Congress, despite losing two seats in Jammu to the BJP, increased its vote share.
Together, the NC and the Congress won 41.6 per cent of votes in the Lok Sabha polls, and led in 41 of the 90 assembly segments. The BJP, with a vote share of 24.4 per cent, led in 29 assembly segments. The People’s Democratic Party, which was kept out of the NC-Congress alliance even though it was part of the INDIA bloc, secured 8.4 per cent of votes and led in five assembly seats.
Together, the NC, the Congress and the PDP secured around 50 per cent votes and led in 46 assembly segments. Though the choice of candidates and local factors will come into play in the assembly polls, observers believe that the broader contours will be similar to that of the Lok Sabha elections.
There is no overwhelming wave in favour of the NC-Congress alliance, even though it is expected to consolidate anti-BJP votes. With defections having weakened the PDP, the NC remains the only regional party that has weathered the aftermath of the abrogation of Article 370. The Congress aims to leverage the NC’s organisational strength to counter the BJP and reclaim its position as an important player, especially in the Hindu-majority Jammu.
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