The Congress’s Iftikar Ahmed defeated his nearest rival, BJP’s Vibodh Gupta, by a margin of 1,404 votes after securing 28,923 votes.The NC did not field any candidate from the constituency according to the seat sharing agreement.However, the Congress managed to win five seats in Kashmir where Pradesh Congress president Tariq Hameed Karra won from Central Shalteng, AICC general secretary and former minister G A Mir from Dooru, Irfan Hafiz Lone from Wagoora-Kreeri, former minister Peerzada Mohammad Syed from Anantnag and former MLA Nizam-uddin Bhat in Bandipora.The performance of the Congress leaders in the Jammu region can be gauged from the fact that most of its senior leaders, including two working presidents, a former Pradesh Congress president and several ministers were humbled by the BJP rivals.Prominent among those who have lost the elections include working president and former deputy chief minister Tara Chand (Chhamb), working president and former minister Raman Bhalla (R S Pura), Pradesh Congress Committee president and former minister Vikar Rasool Wani (Banihal), two-time former MP Choudhary Lal Singh (Basohli), former ministers Manohar Lal Sharma (Billawar), Yogesh Sawhney (Jammu East), Mula Ram (Marh) and Mohd Shabir Khan (Thanamandi).Congress, meanwhile, expressed gratitude to the people for a decisive mandate in favour of NC-Congress coalition to keep BJP out of power.
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