Will abstain from voting in Rajya Sabha elections: Sajad Lone

Jammu and Kashmir People’s Conference president and MLA Sajad Lone on Tuesday (October 14, 2025) said that his party will refrain from voting in the Rajya Sabha elections to be held on October 24.

“I would rather die than vote for the National Conference [NC]. Stop dictating to us who we should vote for and who we shouldn’t. You cannot tag us. you are not Yuvrajsaid Mr. Lone.

Referring to NC vice-president and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah’s remarks that abstaining means voting for the BJP, Mr. Lone said, “Today you [Mr. Abdullah] They are at the pier. You have to prove to the people that you are not denying Congress the Rajya Sabha seat at the behest of the BJP. Prove to people that you are not sitting on the lap of the BJP.”

Dismissing allegations that abstention meant support for the BJP, Mr. Lone said he would not be surprised if Mr. Abdullah accused the Congress of making a deal with the BJP. “Your [Mr. Abdullah] “The feeling of entitlement is synonymous with insanity,” he said.

Mr. Lone accused Mr. Abdullah of cozying up to the BJP. “Are you waiting for our votes because you gifted tons of shawls to the BJP leaders? Because you partied with them incessantly in Delhi? Or because you were the first to give them a fair election certificate? Or because you were caught red-handed in the Tulip Garden, walking around hand in hand with Mr. Kiren Rijiju, the author of the ruthless trust bill?” he said.

JKPC has one seat in the 88-member Assembly. Mr. Lone said the NC was acting as “BJP’s proxy in Jammu and Kashmir.” “You are taking orders from them, not giving seats to other parties and still accusing others of being loyal to the BJP. You sacrificed everyone for them and won with lies and cheating,” he added.

Comparing the NC with the Congress, Mr. Lone said, “Congress has consistently opposed the BJP and it is the only national party that can restore the state. But you are humiliating them. I have personally assured support to many Congress leaders. But we will never vote for the NC.”

Mr. Lone questioned the legacy of the NC government. “As the External Affairs Minister of the then BJP government, you traveled around the world to justify the killings in Kashmir. The people voted for a leader, they got an errand boy for the BJP. You tarnished the reputation of the institution of the Prime Minister’s Office. It will take ten years to restore this institution to its former glory,” Mr. Lone said.