Jammu and Kashmir UT Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Kumar Choudhary. File | Photo credit: Imran Nissar
Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary on Monday (Oct 20, 2025) said the ruling National Conference (NC) will fight the Nagrota and Budgam Assembly seats on public issues, the biggest of which is restoration of statehood in the Union Territory.
Mr. Choudhary expressed confidence that the voters in both the constituencies would ensure the victory of the NR candidates to strengthen the hands of party president Farooq Abdullah and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.
The NC has fielded District Development Council (DDC) member Shamim Begum from Nagrota and former minister Agha Syed Mehmood from Budgam. Both seats go to a by-election on 11 November 2025.
A farewell to BJP legislator Devender Singh Rana last October 31, 2024, was claimed in Nagrota, while the Budgam seat fell vacant after Chief Minister Omar Abdullah retained Ganderbal – his family’s stronghold – after winning two parliamentary seats.
Speaking to reporters at the NC headquarters in Jammu before escorting Begum to file her nomination from Nagrota, the Deputy Chief Minister said, “We will fight the elections on the issues that people are facing and restoration of statehood is the biggest issue for us. We have restarted the Darbar Move practice to provide a big help to the business community and others in Jammu. The BJP has stopped this practice without caring about people’s affairs,” Mr. Choudhary said.
The government recently ordered the closure of Darbar Move offices in the summer capital of Srinagar, hours after Chief Minister Abdullah announced the revival of the age-old tradition introduced by the Dogra rulers in 1872.
According to the order, all offices will reopen in Jammu, the winter capital, on November 3, 2025. The administration led by Governor Manoj Sinha has scrapped the Darbar Move tradition in 2021.
“The revival of Darbar Move is a very big decision by the NC-led government as it will not only benefit the traders in Raghunath Bazar or Afsara Road but will revive the age-old tradition and bring people together,” Choudhary said.
He alleged that the BJP is expected to fight elections on the basis of misleading narratives and dividing people on the basis of their religion, creed and caste.
“People are expected to vote for the candidate of the ruling party rather than the opposition for overall development. The 28 BJP legislators could not do anything for the people in their constituencies during the recent floods,” said the Deputy CM.
“We will win both seats to end BJP’s arrogance,” Mr. Choudhary said.
Another minister, Javed Rana, said the National Conference was a cadre party. “We are confident that the people will stand by the government under the leadership of Mr. Abdullah so that we can bring back the lost glory of the former state,” Mr. Rana said.
Later, accompanied by hundreds of supporters, including the Deputy CM, the Begum submitted her nomination papers before the Nagrota Returning Officer.
Published – 20 Oct 2025 19:13 IST
