The stage is all set for a hotly contested Lok Sabha election in North Kashmir's Baramulla Parliamentary constituency.
Prominent candidates here include former chief minister and vice president of the National Conference (NC) Omar Abdullah; JK People’s Conference chief Sajad Gani Lone, People’s Democratic Party candidate Mir Mohammad Fayaz, and the jailed Abdul Rashid Sheikh.
Though all contenders are relatively well-known, the face-off between Abdullah and Lone will be the one that will be watched most closely.
INDIA bloc partners NC and the Congress (INC) have in the past secured the seat 14 times out of the 15 Lok Sabha elections held since 1957, with the former winning eight times and the latter five. In 2019, NC candidate Muhammad Akbar Lone won the seat by a large majority over his nearest PC competitor, Raja Aijaz Ali.
However, this time around, the competition is anticipated to be fierce, as younger parties with significant support bases in various locations have banded together to support PC candidate Lone, which will be a big challenge for the NC-INC coalition.
The constituency, where elections are scheduled for May 20, 2024, includes 15 assembly segments and a total of 11.90 lakh eligible voters, including 6.24 lakh males and 5.66 lakh females.
Sheikh Muhammad Akbar of the Congress won the first Lok Sabha elections in 1957, followed by INC candidates Syed Ahmed Aga in 1967 and 1971, and Khawaja Mubarak Shah in 1980.
NC's supremacy was highlighted by Saifuddin Soz's three triumphs in 1983, 1984, and 1989. However, in 2014, the tide turned as Muzaffar Hussain Beigh of the PDP won the seat, breaking the NC and INC's longstanding hold.
The NC recovered the seat in 2019 after Muhammad Akbar Lone defeated Raja Aijaz Ali.
Given the past history, current alliances, and rising challengers altering the political environment, the struggle for the Baramulla Lok Sabha seat promises to be one of the most carefully followed races in the 2024 elections.
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