Bandipora headed for close fight between PDP, Cong Bhat,Usman key contestants among 16 candidates Constituency Profile TARIQ MIR Bandipora, Nov 17: Bandipora assembly segment in north Kashmir is set for neck-to-neck fight between the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Congress in the upcoming assembly elections beginning November 25. Although there are 16 candidates are in the fray, including those of National Conference and Peoples Conference, Nizamuddin Bhat of PDP and Usman Majid of Congress are the main contestants for the seat. Bhat is the sitting MLA while Usman Majid was a junior minister in the previous PDP-Congress coalition regime. According to political analysts, the constituency will witness a photo-finish between Bhat and Usman given the prevailing scenario. In 2008 Assembly polls, Bhat won by a margin of 820 votes. The PDP leader secured 13051 votes while Usman got 12231 votes. While Bhat is confident of repeating 2008 performance, Usman is equally sure of his victory. For Bhat, who is banking on what he says PDP wave and popularity of Mufti Muhammad Sayeed, retaining the seat is not an easy task given the anti-incumbency factor against him. Delay in Wullar conservation project, lack of development which including absence of electricity, bad roads and poor healthcare facilities are major poll planks in the area. But most important issue is the ill- planning of Bandipora town for which the locals blame the successive lawmakers. Similarly Usman Majid, who is seeking votes on bringing about a change in the constituency, has to work hard to emerge as a winner. National Conference candidate Muhammad Abdullah Wani too has vote bank in some pockets of the constituency. Wani, who is contesting elections for the third time, secured 5356 votes in the last election. On the other hand, Peoples Conference candidate Muhammad Ismail Ashna, a well- known educationist, too holds influence over some pockets of the segment. In the 2008 polls, Ashana secured 3907 votes. On the basis of voting pattern, the constituency can be divided into three segments; the upper segment comprising Gujjar and Pahari hamlets, witnesses brisk polling; the lower segment comprising villages on banks of Wullar lake witness moderate turnout; the middle part which includes main Bandipora town, Kaloosa and Papchan witnesses low turnout . There are 94787 registered voters in the constituency including 51700 males and 43087 females. From 1977 to 2002, National Conference never lost an assembly election in the constituency. In 2002, Usman Majid (independent) defeated NC’s Javaid Shah to break NC’s hegemony. In the last elections, the party finished at distant fifth position.
Posted on: Tue, 18 Nov 2014 08:58:49 +0000
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