Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has won the bypoll to the Anantnag Assembly constituency after securing a victory by a margin of 12000 votes. However, there were allegations of “election rigging” from opposition parties during the counting.
Out of total 28,000 polled votes, Mufti secured nearly 18,000 votes. Her two main opponents from Hilal Ahmad Shah from Congress and Iftikhar Hussain Misgar of National Conference polled 5,616 and 2811 votes respectively.
Saturday’s victory has paved way for Mehbooba’s fourth term in the Assembly. She was first elected to the Assembly in 1996 on a Congress ticket from Bijbehara constituency. She won in 2002 from Pahalgam and again in 2008 from Wachi seat in Shopian district.
57-year-old Mehbooba was among the eight candidates in the bypoll for Anantnag Assembly seat which was necessitated due to death of incumbent MLA and then chief minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed on January 7 this year.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on her “phenomenal” victory in the bypoll for Anantnag assembly seat.
“Congratulations to J&K CM Mehbooba Mufti for the phenomenal victory in the Anantnag assembly by-election,” he tweeted.
BJP is running a coalition government in the restive border state for the first time with Mehbooba’s People’s Democratic Party.
(With inputs from PTI)
Feature image source: PTI