Srinagar/Jammu, Nov 14: History was remade as after decades any ruling party has lost by polls in Jammu and Kashmir.
Opposition PDP candidate Aga Syed Muntazir on Friday won the Budgam assembly bypoll, defeating ruling National Conference candidate Aga Syed Mehmood by a margin of nearly 4,500 votes while BJP retained the Nagrota assembly constituency with Devyani Rana winning by 24,647 votes.
According to the data on the ECI website, in Budgam, Muntazir secured 21,576 votes against NC candidate Aga Mehmood’s 17,098 at the end of the counting of votes. The BJP candidate Aga Syed Mohsin stood a distant sixth with just 2,619 votes.
Budgam assembly bypoll saw a turnout of 50.01 percent of the 1.26 lakh electorate.
The bypoll in Budgam was necessitated after Chief Minister Omar Abdullah vacated the seat and chose his family bastion of Ganderbal after winning from both constituencies in the assembly elections last year.
In Nagrota, Devyani Rana, who has been leading from the beginning, secured 42,350 votes, defeating Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party (JKNPP) candidate Harsh Dev Singh, who polled 17,703 votes. NC’s Shamim Begum finished third with 10,872 votes.
As the news of her victory spread, Rana received a rousing reception from BJP workers at the counting centre complex.
“My victory goes to all the voters who cast their votes in my favour and to the party leadership for the confidence they have shown in me,” she told reporters here.
On the bypoll outcome, she said, “We are deeply grateful for the warm welcome we received, just as every household and family in Nagrota had blessed Rana Sahab in 2024. Today, people have extended their blessings to us with the same love and support. We dedicate this victory to Rana Sahab as a mark of respect. We wish to serve the people just as he did.”
The Nagrota bypoll had witnessed a voter turnout of more than 75 percent.
Devyani Rana is the daughter of former Nagrota MLA Devender Singh Rana, whose death necessitated the bypoll. He was elected from the constituency in the 2024 assembly elections but died last year.
Rana was pitted against NC nominee and sitting District Development Council member Shamim Begum and JKNPP president Harsh Dev Singh, a former state education minister and three-time MLA from Ramnagar.
Nagrota has alternated between the BJP and the NC in the last five Assembly elections, since 1996. The Congress has not fielded a candidate and has not formally joined the NC campaign despite being part of the alliance at the state level.
PM thanks voters of J&K for BJP win in assembly bypolls
Prime Minister Narendra Modi thanked the voters of Jammu and Kashmir for ensuring the victory of BJP candidate in the assembly bypolls.
“I thank the people of Nagrota in Jammu and Kashmir as well as Nuapada in Odisha for blessing the BJP with spectacular victories in the bypolls,” Modi said in a post on X.
“Congratulations to the newly elected MLAs Devyani Rana ji and Jay Dholakia ji. Wishing them the very best in serving the people. Compliments to the BJP karyakartas (workers) who worked round the clock to ensure these wins,” the prime minister said.
Rana won the Nagrota bypoll that was necessitated due to the death of her father Devender Singh Rana, who was the sitting MLA from the constituency at the time.
Rana defeated Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party (JKNPP) candidate Harsh Dev Singh by 24,647 votes. National Conference candidate Shamim Begum, who got 10,872 votes, lost her deposit. (PTI)
Result is protest against NC for not keeping promises: Aga Muntazir
Opposition PDP candidate Aga Syed Muntazir on Friday won the Budgam assembly bypoll in Jammu and Kashmir, defeating ruling National Conference (NC) candidate Aga Syed Mehmood by a margin of nearly 4,500 votes.
This is the first time that the NC has lost in its bastion of Budgam, in central Kashmir, since 1957, the first elections for the legislative assembly.
According to the data on the ECI website, Muntazir secured 21,576 votes against Mehmood’s 17,098 at the end of the counting of votes.
The BJP candidate Aga Syed Mohsin stood a distant sixth with just 2,619 votes.
Reacting to his win, Muntazir said the bypoll verdict is a protest against the ruling National Conference (NC) for not keeping its promises.
“This verdict is a protest against the NC for not fulfilling its political and developmental promises. This verdict will force the NC to fulfill the promises it made to the people of J&K,” Muntazir told reporters here in the central Kashmir district.
“This (win) is a result of the hard work of 50 years, and now Budgam’s vote will get a true representation. This is an answer to the NC for neglecting the people of Budgam in 2024,” he said and added that the people of Budgam have voted for a change and accountability.
Meanwhile, PDP leader Iltija Mufti described the party’s win as the people’s victory, saying the voters understood that the promises made by the ruling NC turned out to be hollow.
“I want to congratulate the people of Budgam… This is the win of the people of Budgam. They have chosen a party that will work for their betterment,” junior Mufti told reporters here.
“We had consistently made people understand that they gave many opportunities to the NC, even elected a chief minister, but they (NC) went back on their promises. Muntazir will work for the people and serve them,” she added.
The bypoll in Budgam was necessitated after Chief Minister Omar Abdullah vacated the seat and chose his family bastion of Ganderbal after winning from both constituencies in the assembly elections last year.
‘Arrogance is recipe for disaster’, says MP Ruhullah
Srinagar MP Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi on Friday shared a Quranic verse to offer an indirect response to the Budgam by-poll outcome, calling arrogance “a recipe for disaster” and urging humility and introspection.
In a social media post, Mehdi quoted verse 146 from Surah Al-A‘raf, which warns against arrogance and ignoring signs. The verse reads: “I will turn away from My signs those who are arrogant upon the earth without right… And if they see the way of consciousness, they will not adopt it as a way; but if they see the way of error, they will adopt it as a way.”
He wrote that the lesson from the verse is that “arrogance is the recipe for disaster”, adding that “consciousness, humility and introspection is the way.”
Though he did not directly mention the Budgam by-poll, his post appeared to be a subtle response to the result, in which PDP’s Aga Syed Muntazir Mehdi defeated NC’s Aga Syed Mehmood Al-Mosavi by 4,478 votes.
The seat witnessed a tense and dramatic campaign, marked by internal conflicts within the National Conference (NC).
Senior leader Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi publicly refused to campaign for the party’s candidate, Aga Syed Mehmood Al Mosavi, citing unfulfilled election promises by the NC-led government, including delays in implementing the Reservation Sub-Committee report, issues with smart electricity meters, and perceived backtracking on restoring statehood and Article 370. (KNS)
