SRINAGAR: National Conference vice president Omar Abdullah will contest the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections from the Ganderbal segment, the party said on Tuesday, in what marks a U-turn for the former chief minister who had vowed to not fight for a seat in the legislature of a union territory.
The party released a list of 32 candidates which included Omar Abdullah for the Ganderbal assembly seat, a constituency that he represented from 2009 to 2014 when he was the chief minister of the NC-Congress coalition government.
Omar Abdullah had dropped hints on Monday that he is likely to reconsider his decision of not contesting the polls.
Speaking to media after the NC and Congress announced their seat-sharing arrangement on Monday, Omar Abdullah said he does not want to send out a "wrong signal" by asking his party colleagues to contest and the people to cast their votes for an assembly "that I may be suggesting that I look down upon".
"I am conscious of one thing which I had not thought over fully, which is my mistake. If I was not ready to contest an election for an assembly, how can I get the people ready to vote for that assembly? "
"How can I hope that my colleagues will seek votes for an assembly which I am not ready to accept or may be suggesting that I look down upon? It has put a pressure on me and I do not want to give a wrong signal to the people," he said.