NC, Congress alliance sweeps LAHDC-Kargil polls

The National Conference (NC)-Congress alliance swept Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC)-Kargil elections, bagging 21 seats while the BJP managed to win only two seats.

In the first ever polls held since Ladakh was carved out as a Union Territory in 2019, the NC, which is part of I.N.D.I.A alliance bagged 12 seats followed by Congress with nine and the BJP two.

Two independent candidates also were declared winners while the result on one seat was not announced till late in the evening. In the 30-member LAHDC, four members are nominated by the administration.

87 candidates were trying their luck for 26 constituencies in the 5th LAHDC-Kargil polls which were held on October 4. It recorded a 77.61 per cent polling with a total of 95,388 voters including 46,762 women. Electronic voting machines were used for the first time for the council elections, which took place at 278 polling stations across border Kargil district.

The electoral contest, which was held amid tight security measures, attracted significant attention with top leaders from different local and national parties participating in the electioneering.

The NC and Congress had announced a pre-poll alliance but fielded 17 and 22 candidates, respectively. Both parties said the arrangement was restricted to areas where there was a tough contest with the BJP.

In the previous LAHDC-Kargil elections, the BJP had only managed to secure one seat, making their two-seat win this time a notable achievement. The BJP won two seats from Buddhist-majority seats of Cha and Stakchay Khangral.

The impressive performance of the Congress is credited to Rahul Gandh’s tour to the region in late August. The Congress had thrown its support behind the demands of the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) — a local alliance fighting for statehood and special constitutional guarantees on protecting Ladakh’s culture, land, jobs and environment .

Reacting to his party’s victory, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh wrote on X: “The national media of course will blank it out, but trends coming in show Congress leading convincingly in the elections to the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Kargil with an almost complete wipeout of the BJP.  This is a direct impact of @RahulGandhi  continuing Bharat Jodo Yatra in Ladakh last month.”

The NC leader and former chief minister Omar Abdullah said the BJP has been dealt a resounding defeat in the elections “that should serve as a wake-up call for the saffron party.”

“The BJP was dealt a resounding defeat at the hands of the NC-Congress alliance in Kargil today. This result sends a message to all forces and parties that have, undemocratically and unconstitutionally, divided the state of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh without the consent of its people,” he said in a statement.