Srinagar| WTNS | Nov 11: The BJP on Friday retained the Nagrota Assembly seat in Jammu and Kashmir, while the National Conference (NC) suffered a significant setback after losing its Budgam bastion to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the first time in nearly fifty years.

Nagrota: BJP Scores Decisive Victory

BJP candidate Devyani Rana, 30, won the Nagrota bypoll with 42,183 votes, defeating J&K National Panthers Party leader Harsh Dev Singh, who secured 17,661 votes. NC’s Shamim Begum finished a distant third with 10,834 votes.

The seat fell vacant after the death of former MLA Devender Rana, Devyani’s father, in October last year.
“I am grateful to the voters of Nagrota. They blessed my father in 2024 and continued to bless me,” Devyani Rana said.

Budgam: PDP Upsets NC in Historic Shift

In a major political reversal, PDP candidate Aga Syed Muntazir Mehdi won the Budgam bypoll with 21,576 votes, defeating NC’s Aga Syed Mehmood, who managed 17,098 votes despite an intensive campaign by senior NC leaders, including Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.

Budgam had been an NC stronghold for around five decades. Omar Abdullah had won the seat in 2024 with 35,804 votes against Mehdi’s 17,445.

“People of Budgam have voted for change and accountability,” Mehdi said after the victory.

In Budgam, an Independent Candidate Jibran Dar secured 7152, BJP candidate Syed Mohsin Mosvi, secured only 2619 votes. Engineer Rashid’s Awami Ittehad Party (AIP) candidate Nazir Ahmad Khan bagged 3,089 votes & Muntazir Mohi-Ud-Din secured 3030 votes.

NC Infighting Surfaces Publicly

The NC’s defeat came amid visible internal discord. Party MP Aga Ruhullah Mehdi stayed away from the campaign, criticising the Omar Abdullah government for “failing to deliver on its promises.” His absence became a focal point of public debate, with the two leaders exchanging barbs during the campaign.

Ruhullah posted a cryptic message on X: “Arrogance is the recipe for disaster. Consciousness, humility and introspection is the way.”

Reacting sharply, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said Ruhullah had “committed political suicide,” adding, “He killed himself to give me a message. The one who has won from Budgam will never let Ruhullah rise again.”

Omar said the NC working committee will review both bypoll results and identify areas for course correction.

Political Reactions

PDP leader Waheed-ur-Rehmaan Parra said the defeat in Budgam was a “referendum” on Omar Abdullah’s governance, despite the NC holding 44 seats in the Assembly.

BJP leader and Leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma said the result reflected a rejection of “corruption, broken promises and the dictatorship of family politics.”

PDP president Mehbooba Mufti congratulated Budgam voters, saying, “Hats off to the people of Budgam for placing their faith in Aga Muntazir Sahab.”

Senior Peoples Conference leader Abdul Gani Vakil argued that the PDP’s victory was not solely its own, claiming that leaders such as Aga Ruhullah and Molvi Imran Reza Ansari had indirectly supported the PDP candidate. He also alleged that the Nagrota result appeared to be a “fixed match” between the NC and BJP.

The Budgam bypoll was held after Omar Abdullah retained the Ganderbal seat, one of the two constituencies he won in the 2024 elections.