Srinagar: In the second phase, 26 Assembly constituencies are going to polls on Tuesday. The polling will be held in 6 districts including Srinagar, Ganderbal, Budgam, Poonch, Reasi and Rajouri.In every constituency, a tough fight is expected.Kashmir capital Srinagar has 8 assembly seats. These are Lal Chowk, Hazratbal, Khanyar, Habakadal, Chanapora, Zadibal, Eidgah and Central Shalteng.In Lal Chowk, a thrilling triangular contest is on the cards between National Conference’s Sheikh Ahsan Pardeshi, PDP’s Zohaib Yousuf Mir, and BJP’s Ajaz Hussain Rather. Additionally, Apni Party’s Muhammad Ashraf Mir and Ghazanfar Ali from Engineer Rashid-led AIP are also vying for the seat. Notably, both Zohaib and Ahsan are debutants in the electoral fray. Ground reports indicate a nail-biting neck-and-neck contest between PDP and NC candidates.Hazratbal is set to witness a straight fight between PDP’s Asiya Naqash and NC’s Salman Sagar. Naqash, who won this seat in 2014 on a PDP ticket, will aim to repeat her success against Sagar.In Khanyar, Ali Muhammad Sagar of the National Conference is poised to retain his seat, building on his strong track record of winning this constituency four times since 1996. However, he will face competition from Tafazul Mushtaq of the PDP, a relatively new face in the political arena, and Sheikh Imran, the former Srinagar Deputy Mayor, who’s also throwing his hat into the ring. Sagar’s experience and legacy, having served as Minister of Rural Development and National Conference general secretary, may give him an edge.In Habbakadal Constituency, four top contenders are vying for the seat. They are Shamima Firdous (NC), Jeelani Kumar (Apni Party), Arif Irshad Laigro (PDP), and Ashok Bhat (BJP). Bhat’s support hinges on migrant Pandit votes. Laigro and Kumar engaged in extensive door-to-door campaigns. Shamima Firdous – the popular face in the constituency faces stiff competition from the newcomers, particularly Laigro and Kumar, who have made significant grassroots efforts.There is a direct contest between Apni Party Chairman Syed Altaf Bukhar and NC’s Mushtaq Guroo in the Chanapora Assembly segment. PDP’s Iqbla Tramboo and Hilal Wani from BJP are also in the fray.The Zadibal seat is filled with suspense. NC’s Tanvir Sadiq, Gowhar Ali from PDP, Abid Ansari from Peoples Conference, and Tanvir Pathan from Apni Party are in the fray. Former Srinagar Mayor Junaid Matuu is also contesting the election as an Independent candidate. Among the candidates contesting with one another, PC’s Abid Ansari had won this seat on PDP ticket in 2014.NC’s old guard Mubarak Gul this time has been facing a tough challenge from multiple candidates including PDP’s Khurshid Alam and a couple of Independent candidates. Engineer Rashid has also fielded a candidate (Shakeel Ahmed) in this assembly segment. BJP’s Arif Raja is also in the fray.Central Shalteng is witnessing a high-stakes contest as JKPCC president Tariq Hameed Kara takes on Irfan Shah, who defied the party to join the election fray without resigning. Other candidates in the fray are last-time winner Sheikh Noor Muhammad (Independent), PDP’s Adul Qayoom Bhat and Riyaz Mir from Awami National Conference. [KNT]
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