Jailed Kashmiri cleric Sarjan Ahmad Wagay on Thursday filed nomination papers for the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly polls from two seats, Ganderbal and Beerwah,“ days after his candidature was rejected from another constituency.
Wagay, popularly known as Sarjan Barkati, a prominent face at the protest rallies in the south Kashmir districts of Shopian and Kulgam after the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani in 2016, had earlier filed his nomination from the Zainpora Assembly constituency in Shopian.
However, his nomination was rejected because the papers did not include the certificate of oath that was to be duly signed by the jail authorities.
On Thursday, Barkati’s representatives filed his nomination papers from Ganderbal as well as from Beerwah.
National Conference (NC) vice-president and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah will also contest the upcoming polls from Ganderbal.
Abdullah represented Beerwah in the last Assembly of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir.
Barkati was first arrested in 2016 and booked under the Public Safety Act. He was again arrested last year and is facing charges under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
According to the chargesheet filed against him in a court earlier this year, Barkati – an active ideologue, promoter and supporter of the terrorist-secessionist nexus — hatched a criminal conspiracy with others, including his family members, to facilitate, aid, incite, and advise, advocate and promote terrorist and secessionist ideologies and activities through his inflammatory speeches.
The 90-member Jammu and Kashmir Assembly is scheduled to go to polls in three phases on September 18, September 25 and October 1, and the counting of votes will be taken up on October 8.
Delhi is trying to muzzle and silence my voice: Omar Abdullah
While Omer Abdullah while addressing workers at Wayil Ganderbal said :
I knew that leaders in Delhi didn’t like me but to this extent, they hate me was out of imagination, which I experienced in the Parliament election when engineer Rashid was fielded against me. At that moment I didn’t see it as a conspiracy but now during these assembly elections, one more prisoner was fielded against me in Ganderbal which has proved that the leaders and agencies in Delhi are hatching conspiracy against me.
Being more intelligent than intelligent agencies I suddenly filed my nomination from Budgam without informing anybody till the last hour.