National Conference (NC) vice-president and the former chief minister Omar Abdullah on Saturday accused the administration of altering results of the recently held District Development Council (DDC) elections by misusing police to pick up the victorious candidates of Peoples Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) and forcing them to join the J&K Apni Party (JKAP) that is friendly towards the BJP.
“On one hand, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Lt Governor Manoj Sinha boast of free and fair DDC polls and claim democracy has won, but on the other hand, democracy is being murdered by detaining PAGD candidates,” said Omar while addressing a Press conference at his Gupkar residence in Srinagar.
Omar played a purported phone recording to support his claim that the candidates were forced to join the Apni party.
In the phone conversation clip, the husband of a woman candidate who had won from Shopian in south Kashmir could be heard admitting to another person that he was asked to make his wife join Apni Party in exchange for the release of his brother from detention.
“I don’t know on whose command this all is being done, but winning candidates of PAGD are being threatened, humiliated and coerced to join JKAP, which is a B-team of BJP” he alleged.
A beginning in the direction has been started from Shopian to alter the election results in those districts where the PAGD got clear mandate.
Omar pointed out that the Prime Minister while launching the health insurance scheme for residents of Jammu and Kashmir earlier during the day claimed that democracy has won during the DDC elections. However, the democratic win of the PAGD candidates was now being murdered by making them join the JKAP.
Showkat Ganai, a former MLC of National Conference and a senior party leader Shabir Ahmed Kullay were kept under detention to change the verdict of the DDC elections, he alleged.
He said that the verdict of the DDC elections was a clear message against abrogation of the Article 370 and splitting Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories.
Abdullah, however, said that he does not claim that the entire population of the union territory was with us but majority have voted against the decisions of last year’s 5 August, Omar added.