Omar frowns upon ally Congress over campaign issue in J&K

Srinagar, May 2 (IANS) National Conference leader Omar Abdullah on Thursday frowned up his party's ally Congress, saying its "leadership" has not held even a single election meeting in Jammu and Kashmir and had given a "walkover" to BJP as far as the "optics of the campaign" were concerned.

Abdullah, a former Chief Minister of the state, contrasted the "approach" of the Congress towards Jammu and Kashmir with that of the BJP.

"It says a lot about the Congress and its approach to J&K. There hasn't been a single election meeting by its leadership," he tweeted to vent out his anger.

"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 (Kashmir) Valley, but they didn't ignore the state," Abdullah said.

He was clearly referring to a number of rallies addressed by Modi and Shah in Jammu region during the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.

Stating that the Congress had a fighting chance in four of the six seats and in three, the main opponent was the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Abdullah said, "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 alliance for the Lok Sabha elections in the state.

While the Congress did not field a 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.