Omar Abdullah concedes defeat, congratulates Independent candidate Abdul Rashid

SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKNC) vice-president and Baramulla Lok Sabha candidate Omar Abdullah has conceded defeat and congratulated Independent candidate Abdul Rashid Sheikh for his victory in North Kashmir.

In a post on his X account, Omar Abdullah conceded defeat and congratulated Independent candidate Abdul Rashid Sheikh for his victory in North Kashmir. He added that the voters have spoken and in a democracy, that’s all that matters.

“I think it’s time to accept the inevitable. Congratulations to Engineer Rashid for his victory in North Kashmir. I don’t believe his victory will hasten his release from prison nor will the people of North Kashmir get the representation they have a right to, but the voters have spoken and in a democracy, that’s all that matters”, Abdullah said in a post on X.

I think it’s time to accept the inevitable. Congratulations to Engineer Rashid for his victory in North Kashmir. I don’t believe his victory will hasten his release from prison nor will the people of North Kashmir get the representation they have a right to but the voters have…

— Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) June 4, 2024

Baramulla Lok Sabha candidate Omar Abdullah is trailing in Baramulla by a margin of 1,34,705 votes against independent candidate Abdul Rashid Sheikh, as per the ECI. Former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti is trailing in the Anantnag-Rajouri seat.

This is the first Lok Sabha election in Jammu and Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370. The elections to the five seats in Jammu and Kashmir were held in five phases. In the 2019 Lok Sabha election, the BJP had six candidates in the fray in Jammu and Kashmir but failed to win a single seat in Kashmir.

Strict security measures have been implemented to ensure the smooth counting of votes for more than 8,000 candidates in this general election. Vote counting commenced at 8 pm today.

Earlier, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said that a “very robust system” has been put in place. “There are around 10.5 lakh booths. Each booth will have 14 tables. There are observers and micro-observers. Nearly, 70-80 lakh people are involved in the process,” he said.

The Assembly elections in Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh were held simultaneously with voting for the 543-member Lok Sabha. Results of 175 Assembly constituencies in Andhra Pradesh and 147 Assembly constituencies in Odisha and results of bypolls in 25 Assembly constituencies will also be declared today.

The Lok Sabha elections were conducted in seven phases- on April 19, April 26, May 7, May 13, May 20, May 25 and June 1. (ANI)