Voting in the second phase of the ongoing Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections will take place on Wednesday with 239 candidates in the fray in 26 constituencies across the Union Territory.
In the first J&K Assembly poll since the reorganisation of the former state, polling will take place for 15 Assembly segments in the Ganderbal, Srinagar and Budgam districts of Central Kashmir; and in 11 constituencies in the Reasi, Rajouri and Poonch districts of the Jammu division in the second phase.
In Kashmir, National Conference (NC) vice-president Omar Abdullah is contesting in two seats – Ganderbal and Budgam. J&K Congress chief Tariq Hameed Karra is also in the fray from the Central Shalteng seat, where Lok Sabha Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi campaigned on Monday.
Apni Party leader Altaf Bukhari is contesting in Srinagar’s Channapora, while BJP state unit chief Ravinder Raina is seeking re-election from the Nowshera seat in Jammu.
For the NC, the Ganderbal seat holds significance since three generations of the Abdullahs have represented the constituency in the J&K Assembly. Former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah is once again in the fray from the family bastion, as well as from Budgam.
In Jammu, the BJP’s J&K president Ravinder Raina, former ministers Chowdhary Zulfikar Ali, Shabir Ahmed Khan and Syed Mushtaq Bukhari are among key candidates that are in the fray for 11 assembly constituencies. Of these, six constituencies are ST reserved. Bukhari, 75-year-old who ended his four-decade affiliation with NC to join the BJP in 2022, is contesting from the Scheduled Tribe-reserved Surankote seat. Shabir Khan, a former minister, is contesting as a Congress candidate in the ST-reserved Thannamandi seat against Zulfikar Ali, a former minister who was elected twice as PDP nominee in 2008 and 2014 but has since joined the BJP.
Modi to address rally in Sonipat
After wrapping up the three-day US visit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday will address a public meeting in Haryana in Sonipat.
Several senior BJP leaders, including Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, will share the dais with the PM. BJP district president Jasbir Dodwa said the rally will be historic.
In his first rally in Haryana on September 15 in Kurukshetra ahead of the October 5 Assembly polls, Modi urged the people of the state to elect a BJP government for the third consecutive time.
Kurukshetra, which was a key hub of the farmers’ protests against the now-scrapped central farm laws during 2020-21, the PM highlighted the farmer-centric policies of the BJP-led governments in Haryana and at the Centre.
Rahul to address rally, meet professionals in J&K
Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi will address an election rally in Jammu on Wednesday in support of Congress candidates Raman Bhalla and TS Tony, who are contesting the polls from Jammu South and Bahu Assembly constituencies respectively.
Before the rally, Gandhi will interact with some professionals in Jammu. According to a statement by the All India Professionals Congress (AIPC), the event aims to foster open dialogue on the significant challenges faced by professionals in the region, providing a unique opportunity for their voices to be heard at the national level. “The AIPC invited professionals to join this conversation and contribute to shaping the future of Jammu and Kashmir,” Sanjay Sapru, head of the AIPC’s Jammu and Kashmir unit said.
Gandhi will end the day with a public rally at Sopore.
Andhra HC to hear plea on Tirupati laddu
The Andhra Pradesh High Court on Wednesday will hear a petition filed by YSRCP leader Y V Subba Reddy over the Tirupati laddu controversy.
During an NDA legislative party meeting last week, TDP supremo and Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu claimed that the previous YSRCP government did not even spare the Sri Venkateswara temple and used substandard ingredients and animal fat for making laddus.
Amit Shah in Maharashtra
Union Home Minister Amit Shah will visit Nashik and Kolhapur on Wednesday, state BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule said last week.
“His guidance will energise party workers and ensure the Mahayuti (comprising BJP, Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar-led NCP) retains power in Maharashtra, Bawankule asserted. Polls are likely to be held in the state in November.
Delhi BJP to hold membership drive
The BJP’s Delhi unit will undertake a mega membership exercise on Wednesday on the occasion of the birth anniversary of party ideologue Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya, the party said in a statement.
A review meeting of the BJP’s ongoing membership drive was held at the Talkatora stadium here on Sunday where the party’s national general secretary Vinod Tawde emphasised the importance of expanding party membership ahead of the Delhi Assembly elections, slated to be held early next year.
Meanwhile, Party national president and Union Health Minister J P Nadda will pay tributes to Upadhyay at the party headquarters and also inaugurate a health camp on the occasion.
– With PTI inputs