SRINAGAR: Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Saturday won the by-poll to the Anantnag Assembly constituency by more than 12,000 votes.
After 10 rounds of counting, Mehbooba secured more than 16,000 votes against her nearest rival and Congress candidate Hilal Ahmad Shah who got 5,529 votes. National Conference candidate Iftikhar Misger was a distant third, securing 2,702 votes, district election officials said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose party is in a coalition government with Mehbooba’s PDP, was quick to congratulate her.
57-year-old Mehbooba was among eight candidates in the by-poll 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.
The voting was held on June 22. Of the 28,446 voters, interestingly, 356 chose NOTA option in the by-poll.
This will be Mehbooba’s fourth term in the Jammu and Kashmir 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.
Expresses gratitude to people
SRINAGAR: Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti on Saturdayextended her heartfelt gratitude to the people of Anantnag for giving her a decisive and resounding mandate to implement the mission and vision of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed.
“I wish to extend my heartfelt gratitude to the emancipated voters of Anantnag any our party cadres for their support and their hard work,” Ms Mehbooba said in a statement.
“This victory belongs to you, the people of Anantnag and the people of Jammu and Kashmir on whose support I will be counting immensely in the days and months to come to pull Jammu and Kashmir out of the morass and usher the state into an era of peace and prosperity,” she said and added that the trust reposed by the people of Anantnag in her, is a vindication of their love and affection for Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, “which they have reiterated by handing-over a decisive mandate to me.”
“It is an honour and a privilege to be elected from a seat which was represented by my father and I am heartened that the voters of Anantnag have put their trust in me to continue the work on his behalf,” she said
“I assure you that I will try to accomplish the mission and vision of Mufti Sahab to bring peace to Jammu and Kashmir and happiness in the lives of its people,” Ms Mehbooba said and added that her priority is the people and not the power. “I would continue to work for my people to end their miseries,” she said.
Mehbooba said she is especially overwhelmed by the support extended by the youth of the area to the inclusive and progressive policies of her Government aimed at bringing political stability and economic prosperity to Jammu and Kashmir.
The Chief Minister said the credit for PDP’s impressive performance in this election, undoubtedly, goes to the disciplined, dedicated and ideologically motivated cadres of the party. She complimented PDP cadres for having successfully and effectively carried the party’s political and economic agenda to the grassroots level. “It is because of the untiring and selfless efforts of the PDP cadres that their party has today become a real people’s movement across Jammu and Kashmir,” she said and added that she would also like to express her gratitude to those who couldn’t vote in this election for various reasons.
She also expressed gratitude to the Kashmir Pandits for voting decisively in her favour. “I am also grateful to my Pandit brethren for having voted decisively in my favour,” she said.
“It would be my endeavour to work for the welfare of the people, especially the youth, who have suffered untold miseries because of the political and economic instability and uncertainties plaguing the state for the past more than six decades,” she said adding; “All of you will be going to be with me in the new era that is to begin for JK soon.”