J&K Assembly Polls: 'BJP Pitted Jailed Separatist Against Me To Suppress My Voice', Says Omar Abdullah

National Conference leader Omar Abdullah has accused the BJP-led central government of running a campaign to weaken his political candidature in the upcoming Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections. Abdullah claims that the ruling party is strategically pitting a jailed separatist candidate against him as part of a larger effort to suppress his voice.

Addressing several election rallies in Ganderbal, where he is contesting, Abdullah recalled his previous electoral experience in Baramulla, where he lost to Sheikh Abdul Rashid, who campaigned from jail using an emotional audio clip. "I always suspected that Delhi would try to silence me, but I never thought they would go to this extent," he said.

Referring to the assembly elections, Omar expressed surprise at the candidacy of Sarjan Ahmad Wagay, also known as Barkati, who is currently in jail but still filed nomination papers from Ganderbal. "When I decided to contest from Ganderbal, there were reports that this person would stand against me. This made me doubt whether it was a mere coincidence or part of some larger conspiracy."

Omar said he could understand a local candidate challenging him in Baramulla, but a candidate coming from Shopian raised his suspicions. "They could not find a local jailed candidate, so they took one from another district," he said. He added that there is a planned effort to disrupt his campaign and suppress his voice.

He explained that his team secretly collected and filed nomination papers from various constituencies on the last day to avoid interference. "Yesterday's events confirmed my suspicion. It became clear that it was no coincidence when this man in jail filed his nomination in Ganderbal and then also took the nomination papers from Beerwah, thinking I would contest from there because I had done so earlier. But when we filed from Budgam, they were surprised."

"These tactics reflect the BJP's larger agenda to suppress my voice from Jammu and Kashmir," Abdullah continued. "This is not just an attack on me; it is an attempt to silence the voices of the people I represent. When I speak for my rights and dignity, it's for my people, not just for myself."

Abdullah expressed confidence that the people of Ganderbal will recognize the BJP's tactics and refuse to let them succeed. "The BJP may have succeeded in their conspiracies once, but I am confident that this time, the people will see through their plans," Omar concluded.