People’s Conference chief Sajad Lone on Friday ruled out any pre-poll alliance with the BJP, which had earlier allied with the party during the PDP-BJP rule in Jammu and Kashmir.
“Our party will not forge any alliance either with any national party or local party. We have decided to contest [the upcoming Assembly elections] from all parts of J&K, including the Pir Panjal Valley, Chenab Valley and Ladakh,” said Mr. Lone.
Served as Minister
Mr. Lone served as a Minister during the PDP-BJP rule after the BJP forged an alliance with him in 2014. He won two constituencies in north Kashmir in 2014. “We will field candidates from all 87 constituencies this time,” said Mr. Lone.
Meanwhile, Mr. Lone’s party received a shot in the arm on Friday when senior PDP leader and ex-MLA Abid Ansari joined it. Earlier, another PDP MLA Imran Ansari and National Conference (NC) spokesman Junaid Azim Mattu had joined the People’s Conference .
“I left the PDP because of corruption, dictatorship and dynastic politics. The PDP failed to address the concerns of my constituency. A very few people would dictate the party politics and the MLAs had no say in the party,” said Mr. Ansari.
‘Farooq lying’
On NC president Dr. Farooq Abdullah’s remarks on granting autonomy to J&K if voted to power, Mr. Lone said: “Dr. Abdullah has reached an age where he should tell the truth. He is again befooling people.”
Mr. Lone said the NC had passed an autonomy resolution in 1999 “but nothing happened”.
“I would support any resolution or Bill on autonomy, but I have a caveat that a white paper should be made public first about who and which party was responsible for the erosion of the State’s autonomy in the first place,” said Mr. Lone.
Pitches for early polls
Meanwhile, the People’s Conference pitched for early elections in J&K. “The right to demand elections is with us who did not boycott the urban local bodies or panchayat elections,” said Mr. Lone.
