Ruling National Conference grapples with an upset Congress, piqued MP Ruhullah ahead of Assembly, Rajya Sabha bypolls

With the Assembly and Rajya Sabha bypolls round the corner, the ruling National Conference (NC) on Wednesday (October 22, 2025) saw itself grappling with an upset coalition partner in Congress and a piqued Member of Parliament in Aga Ruhullah Mehdi when he decided to stay away from the poll campaign.

The NC held a meeting of party legislators and coalition partners in Srinagar to discuss the strategy for the upcoming bypolls of Rajya Sabha and two Assembly seats, besides the J&K Assembly session scheduled for October 23. However, the Congress decided not to attend the meeting chaired by NC president Farooq Abdullah and vice-president and J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to chalk out a joint strategy.

J&K Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) chief Tariq Hamid Karra held a separate meeting of party leaders and the party’s six legislators in Srinagar. The Congress evaluated its relationship with the ruling NC.

“We have a sense of hurt as a coalition partner, which has to be a relationship of trust. We were negotiating a Rajya Sabha seat (with the NC) and were pushed to the fourth seat. We were offered the Nagrota Assembly seat instead, where the NC came number two in the 2024 Assembly elections. The decision on Rajya Sabha elections is not like taking a left or right turn. A discussion will be held over it,” G.A. Mir, senior Congress leader and MLA, said.

In spite of the pre-poll alliance in 2024, the Congress decided against taking up any ministerial berth in J&K “till the Statehood is restored”. The NC’s decision to offer a not-so-safe fourth seat to the Congress has deepened the crisis between the coalition partners. J&K has four Rajya Sabha seats and the bypolls are scheduled for October 24. The NC has decided to contest in all four seats.

Mr. Mir asked partner NC to “introspect”. “It should ensure that the spirit of alliance is preserved through transparency and mutual respect, especially at a time when secular and democratic values need to be strengthened in J&K,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Congress leadership of J&K has prepared a feedback report for the party high command in Delhi, “to take a call on the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections” and “the coalition with the NC”.

Mr. Omar Abdullah, on the other hand, sought the support of Congress and Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the Rajya Sabha polls. “I hope Congress and PDP would support the NC in the upcoming RS elections, helping to keep the BJP out,” he said.

Trouble with Ruhullah

Besides the irked Congress, the NC is also struggling to ensure that MP Ruhullah, an influential Shia cleric, “does not become a poll factor”. Mr. Ruhullah had publicly decided to stay away from the party campaign over “the party’s failure to fulfil the promises made to people in the manifesto last year”.

NC’s candidate Aga Syed Mahmood, who is contesting from the Budgam seat, used a reconciliatory tone towards MP Ruhullah on Wednesday (October 22). “Mr. Ruhullah belongs to a known dynasty. He has an undeniable stature. He has won thrice from Budgam since 2002. However, he became an MLA because of the party,” Mr. Mahmood, also a Shia cleric, said.

He termed his relation with MP Ruhullah “like that of a son”. “He is my relative. However, Mr. Ruhullah will decide whether to join the campaign or not. I see my party in a good position electorally,” Mr. Mahmood added.

In a fresh cryptic statement made on social media platforms, Mr. Ruhullah said, “I was not shaped by any agency. I was shaped by the people of Jammu & Kashmir. They taught me what no political institution could: courage, patience, and conviction. I will always stand with them, for they have been and will always remain my first and foremost priority.”

The Budgam seat will go to the polls on November 11. NC candidate Omar Abdullah won the seat in the 2024 assembly elections and decided to give it up to retain the Ganderbal seat.