NC had to ‘sacrifice’ many seats for alliance with Congress: Omar Abdullah

Srinagar, Aug 30 (PTI) National Conference (NC) vice president Omar Abdullah Friday said the pre-poll alliance with the Congress for the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly polls was not an easy decision as the party had to “sacrifice” many seats it felt it had a chance to win.

Addressing a party function at the NC headquarters Nawa-i-Subah, Abdullah said the struggle for the “restoration of the rights” of the people of Jammu and Kashmir is a collective fight.

“This is not only our fight, but of the whole Jammu and Kashmir. If we have to undo the wrongs done to us, it will not only benefit us, but every citizen of Jammu and Kashmir. We are fighting this battle collectively for Jammu and Kashmir.

“That is why we joined hands with the Congress, even as it was not an easy decision for us, (because) we had to sacrifice those seats where we knew only the NC can give a tough fight,” the NC vice president said.

However, he said the alliance with the Congress was necessary to defeat the BJP.

“In many seats, like the low-lying areas of Jammu, Poonch, and Rajouri, the Congress and we can together fight those powers, that is why we gave the Congress some seats here from the NC’s kitty,” he added.

Abdullah said the first impact of the pre-poll alliance was seen when former Congress leader and Democratic Progressive Azad Party chief Ghulam Nabi Azad announced he will not campaign for his party in the polls.

“The first impact (of the alliance) was that Azad will not campaign and has asked his party candidates to decide whether to contest or not,” Abdullah said.

On Wednesday, Azad expressed his inability to campaign for DPAP candidates citing health issues.

“The unforeseen circumstances have forced me to step back from the campaign trail… The candidates should assess whether they can continue without my presence. If they feel my absence would impact their chances, they have the freedom to withdraw their candidacy,” Azad said in a statement.

Abdullah also said if the NC is elected to power, it would revoke the Public Safety Act (PSA) from Jammu and Kashmir.

“We have witnessed many problems – PSA has been used blindly. We have promised in our manifesto that if the NC forms the government, we will revoke the PSA from Jammu and Kashmir so that there is no scope for its misuse,” he said, adding “we will also stop arrests of youths”.