Congress giving BJP walkover in J&K campaign: Omar

Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday expressed bitterness over the Congress giving a walkover to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the state during campaigning.

The National Conference (NC) Vice-President tweeted: "It says a lot about the Congress and its approach to J&K. There hasn't been a single election meeting by its leadership."

"Contrast this with the number of rallies addressed by (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi and (BJP President) Amit Shah. They may not have come to the Valley, but they didn't ignore the state," Abdullah said.

Stating that the Congress had a fighting chance in four of the six seats and in three the main opponent was the BJP, Abdullah tweeted, "It's inexplicable how the BJP was simply given a walkover as far as the optics of the campaign were concerned."

His comments assume significance as the NC and the Congress have an electoral alliance in the Lok Sabha elections in the state. 

While the Congress did not field candidate against NC President Farooq Abdullah in Srinagar, the NC responded by leaving Jammu and Udhampur seats for the Congress. They are having a "friendly contest" in Baramulla and Anantnag seats. IANS