Omar Abdullah, Mehbooba Mufti to not contest Jammu and Kashmir election next year; here's why

Two former Chief Ministers of Jammu and Kashmir-- Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti-- have decided to not contest the upcoming  assembly elections. According to reports, Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti have said they will not contest the assembly polls that are scheduled to be held next year until the central government restores the statehood in Jammu and Kashmir.

On August 4, 2019, Jammu and Kashmir was converted into a Union Territory. Since then, the regional political parties in Jammu and Kashmir have been pushing for the restoration of statehood.

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"Omar has said from the beginning that If the statehood is not restored, He won't fight the elections," Farooq Abdullah said.

Meanwhile, the PDP president Mehbooba Mufti also said that she will not contest the assembly elections. Mufti had said that the next assembly elections are not her priority nor her attaining power.

"Election is not my priority personally, Elections will happen, and my party will participate but my priority is to fight the prevailing situation in the valley. People are suffocated, there is monitoring everywhere, they have caged our thoughts as well," Mehbooba Mufti said.

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"There is so much suppression and so many arrests of youth, poor boys are being taken to jails outside the JK, and unemployment issues. And our existence is under threat. The BJP is trying to finish our existence," the former Jammu and Kashmir CM said. 

While both the former J&K Chief Ministers have decided to not contest the upcoming assembly elections, their party's National Conference and PDP will be contesting the assembly polls.

PDP has been pushing for a coalition between all People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) parties. With an agenda to keep BJP away from power. 

• Jammu and Kashmir
• Mehbooba Mufti
• Omar Abdullah
• National Conference
• PDP
• Assembly Election