The alliance was announced by NC president Farooq Abdullah after discussions with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and party chief Mallikarjun Kharge in Srinagar.
Union home minister Amit Shah launched a scathing attack on the Congress party over its alliance with the National Conference (NC) for the upcoming Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections, questioning its stance on key issues outlined in the NC’s poll manifesto.
“The Congress party, which has repeatedly risked the nation’s unity and security to satiate its greed for power, has once again exposed its ulterior motives by allying with the Abdullah family’s ‘National Conference’ in the Jammu and Kashmir elections,” Shah said on X, listing ten pointed questions directed at the grand old party and its leader, Rahul Gandhi. “Does the Congress support the National Conference’s promise of a separate flag for Jammu and Kashmir?” the senior BJP leader asked.
One of Shah’s primary concerns was the National Conference’s pledge to restore Article 370 and 35A, provisions that granted special autonomy to Jammu and Kashmir. Shah questioned whether the Congress party supports this move, suggesting that it would push the region back into an “era of unrest and terrorism.”
The abrogation of Article 370 by the BJP-led central government in 2019 was a landmark decision that Shah has often defended as essential for national security and integration.
Shah also questioned the Congress-NC alliance’s stance on engaging with Pakistan, implying that such a dialogue could promote separatism in the region. “Do the Congress party and Rahul Gandhi support the National Conference’s decision to start ‘LoC Trade’ with Pakistan, thereby nurturing terrorism and its ecosystem across the border?” he asked.
Shah accused the Congress of having an “anti-reservation stance,” alleging that NC’s promises would end reservations for Dalits, Gujjars, Bakarwals, and Pahadi communities.
The home minister went on to question the Congress party’s position on renaming prominent places in Jammu and Kashmir, such as Shankaracharya Hill and Hari Hill, to names with Islamic connotations. “Does the Congress want ‘Shankaracharya Hill,’ to be known as ‘Takht-e-Suleiman,’ and ‘Hari Hill’ as ‘Koh-e-Maran’?” he wrote, using the narrative often employed by the BJP, which accuses its rivals of indulging in “appeasement politics.”
The Congress-NC alliance, announced after discussions between Rahul Gandhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, and NC president Farooq Abdullah, represents a united front against the BJP in a region that has long been at the centre of India’s most sensitive security concerns.
National Conference vice president Omar Abdullah on Friday said seat-sharing arrangement with the Congress has been finalised for a majority of assembly seats in Jammu and Kashmir. “Consensus has been reached to a large extent. I can tell you that we have reached a consensus on the maximum seats out of the 90,” Abdullah told reporters in Kulgam district of south Kashmir.
Assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir will be held in three phases — September 18, September 25 and October 1. The counting of votes will be held on October 4.
