Congress divorces National Conference after five and half years of marriage

Call it fallout of the parliament election drubbing, Congress on Sunday ended its alliance with National Conference (NC) and decided to go solo in the Jammu and Kashmir assembly polls slated
to be held in November-December this year. However the party reaffirmed its commitment to stay in the Omar Abdullah led government till its full term.

"It is better not to be dependent on other parties. Like we did in 2002 and 2008, let us contest on our own," Ghulam Nabi Azad, former chief minister and leader of opposition in the Rajya Sabha, told reporters in Jammu.

Elaborating, Azad said the party does not want to run the risk of having alliance without the transfer of vote from one party to another.

"As a party I don't think transfer of the vote from one party to another has been to the extent which it should have been. We don't want to run the risk in the assembly polls. Should we have the alliance and there is no transfer of vote," said Azad.

"Each political party contests so that their candidates win. And we presume that in particularly constituency I should sit pretty well because NC is there and I need not to worry. But ultimately they are not able to transfer the vote and I will lose," he said.

Congress-National Conference alliance was blanked out in the recent parliamentary polls with both parties losing all six seats of Jammu and Kashmir. BJP defeated Congress in two seats from Jammu and lone Lok Sabha seat from Ladakh. NC lost all the three seats of Kashmir valley to People's Democratic Party (PDP). Azad and NC president Farooq Abdullah were among the prominent losers.

What added insult to injury was PDP took lead in 39 out of 46 assembly segments of Kashmir Valley while BJP took the lead in 26 out of 37 assembly segments of Jammu. BJP also took lead in two of the
four assembly segments of Ladakh division.

"All ranks and files of well-established Congress cadre in J&K are united and have capacity and capability to win more than majority seats of its own in the state," said Farooq Renzushah, chairman media J&K Pradesh Congress Committee.

Congress, sources said, would field candidates in all 87 seats in the assembly elections although seat adjustment with three smaller parties is not ruled out.

Like their chequered history of governance, the breaking of alliance too was marred by controversy. Soon after Congress announced the move, J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah took to twitter claiming that he was the first to communicate the decision to Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

"I met the Mrs Gandhi 10 days ago & thanked her for all her support. I conveyed NC's decision to fight the elections alone. I explained the reasons but also told her I wouldn't be making a public announcement because I didn't want it to look opportunistic. For it to be spun now as a Cong decision is wrong & a complete distortion of the facts, not surprising but incorrect none the less," Omar said.

Congress and NC had contested the assembly elections of 2008 separately. But when the voters threw a fractured mandate, NC with 28 seats joined hands with Congress which had won 17 members and both
formed the government which continues.

The party, however, fought 2009 parliamentary polls together and swept the polls. Congress won all the two seats of Jammu but lost Ladakh seat to NC rebel who was contesting as an independent. NC won all the three seats of the Calley in 2009.

"This was opportunist alliance aimed at enjoying the luxuries of power. It had nothing to do with the common people. People suffered because of this alliance. They fought the 2008 elections separately
and criticized each other. But after results they joined hands. It was the unholy alliance and J&K saw the worst in this regime," said Ravinder Raina, state president of Bharatiya Janta Yuva Morcha.