India state polls: Congress-NC alliance wins in J&K

The National Conference (NC)-Congress alliance yesterday stormed back to power in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), India’s only Muslim-majority region.
The NC-Congress alliance secured 48 of the 90 seats in J&K assembly and nearest challenger BJP bagged 29 seats in an election held for the first time after the removal of Articles 370 which gave the state a special status under the Constitution.
Congress could manage to win just six seats. The People’s Democratic Party, led by former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti, won just three seats.
NC President Farooq Abdullah told reporters in Srinagar that his son Omar would be the new chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir.
In Haryana, where the electoral battle was mainly between BJP and Congress, the saffron party won 48 of total 90 assembly seats and was poised to form a government for a third time while Congress got 36.
The victory in Haryana is likely to help BJP in coming assembly elections in Maharashtra, India’s most industrialized state where it is caught in a bitter seat tussle with allies, Delhi and in Jharkhand in the next few months.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said BJP’s win in Haryana was a “victory of the politics of development and good governance” while Congress described the defeat in the state as “totally unexpected”.
Congress said it would complain to the independent Election Commission of India in a day or two.