'Big fall from grace'; Former CM's Omar Abdullah, Mehbooba Mufti concede defeat in Jammu Kashmir

SRINAGAR: Former Chief Ministers Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti suffered defeat in the first LS polls conducted after the revocation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir. Despite being overshadowed by the INDIA alliance resurgence news, this is to be considered as one of the biggest coups of this election.

National Conference Vice President Omar Abdullah was defeated by Sheikh Abdul Rashid in Baramulla constituency. Sheikh Abdul Rashid is currently serving a jail term for abetting terrorism in the valley. Sheikh’s victory is by a whopping three lakh majority. Popularly known as Engineer Rashid, the Baramulla native has been serving a jail term for the past five years in a UAPA case related to funding terrorism. Sheikh Rashid, the chief of Awami Ittehad Party contested as an independent in the constituency while his campaign was spearheaded by sons Sheed and Azrar Rashid.

Meanwhile in Anantnag – Rajouri constituency, Mehbooba Mufti faced a surprise defeat from Mian Altaf of NC by more than two lakh votes. Both the former CMs accepted the defeat and thanked the people for their support. Meanwhile, BJP’s Jugal Kishore Sharma and Jitendra Singh tasted victory in Jammu and Udhampur seats.