Ishtiyaq Kar

Srinagar, Aug 28 (KNS): New candidates fielded by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for the upcoming Assembly elections are confident about their chances of victory.
With a significant percentage of the BJP's lineup comprising fresh faces, these candidates are eager to make their mark in the political landscape of the region.
Buoyed by the party's robust organizational support and the changing political dynamics in J&K, the newcomers are hopeful of securing a win and contributing to the BJP's aim of expanding its influence across the Jammu and Kashmir.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has introduced a roster of mostly new faces for the upcoming Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir.
The nomination process, which concluded on Tuesday, saw 279 candidates filing their papers across 24 constituencies in the first phase of the three-phased polls.
BJP has fielded newcomers, including several figures who have recently joined the party from other political groups.
Among the prominent candidates are former National Conference (NC) leader Devender Singh Rana, who is also the brother of Union Minister Jitendra Singh, former Congress minister Sham Lal Sharma, and former NC minister S.S. Salathia.
Conspicuously absent from the first list of BJP candidates are senior leaders like J&K President Ravinder Raina, former Deputy Chief Ministers Nirmal Singh and Kavinder Gupta, suggesting a generational shift within the party's strategy.Click Here To Follow Our WhatsApp Channel
While the BJP has put forward 16 candidates in this phase, the National Conference (NC) has also released its candidate lists, retaining around 60% of its 2014 Assembly election candidates.
Notable NC leaders, including Omar Abdullah, Ali Mohammad Sagar, Nasir Aslam Wani, and Abdul Rahim Rather, will contest in the upcoming elections.
The Congress and People's Democratic Party (PDP) have similarly finalized their candidates for the first phase, with many already having filed their nominations.
The elections are set to be held in three phases on September 18, 25, and October 1, with vote counting scheduled for October 4. Following recent delimitation, the total number of Assembly seats in Jammu and Kashmir stands at 114, with 24 seats reserved for Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir. The remaining 90 seats are split between the Jammu region (43) and the Kashmir Valley (47).
In the 2014 elections, the BJP secured 25 seats, all in Jammu, while the PDP won 28 seats, primarily in the Kashmir Valley. This election will test the BJP's ability to expand its influence in the region, especially in the Kashmir Valley, where it has historically faced significant challenges.(KNS)