Jammu and Kashmir: Will Omar Abdullah face jailed cleric Sarjan Barkati in family bastion Ganderbal assembly seat?

National Conference vice president Omar Abdullah may face jailed cleric Sarjan Barkati in the assembly poll contest from party bastion Ganderbal in Jammu and Kashmir. Abdullah had lost Lok Sabha election from Baramulla seat to Engineer Rashid, who contested elections from Tihar jail facing UAPA charges.

Sarjan Ahmad Wagay, popular as Sarjan Barkati, is all set to file his nomination papers from Ganderbal seat which goes to poll in the second phase of Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections on September 25.

Barkati had earlier filed nomination from Zainapora assembly seat in Shopian of South Kashmir. But his nomination papers were rejected on September 4. Zainpora is among the 24 seats voting in first phase of polling on September 18.

Officials had then said that the nomination was rejected since Barkati could not provide a complete signed oath certificate on time. “It has been decided that he (Barkati) will file his nomination papers from Ganderbal,” Barkati's nephew Rehbar Ahmad told Indian Express.

Abdullah Bastion

Ganderbal seat in Central Kashmir assumes significance since it is an Abdullah family strong hold. The seat has in the past elected three generations of Abdullah family — party founder Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah in 1977, his son Farooq Abdullah thrice in 1983, 1987 and 1996 and Omar Abdullah in 2008.

Omar who had earlier said that he will not contest elections is contesting from Ganderbal seat. He lost his Ganderbal seat in assembly elections held in September–October 2002. 

Jammu and Kashmir is voting for its 90-member assembly in three phases. While the first phase of voting in Jammu and Kashmiris scheduled on September 18, the other two round will be held on September 25 and October 1. The votes will be counted on October 8.

Face of Burhan Wani protests

Barkati, 38, was a prominent face in the protest marches in South Kashmir districts of Shopian and Kulgam after the killing of Burhan Wani in an encounter on July 8, 2016.

Wani was the top district commander of Hizbul Mujahideen and became a poster boy of the militancy in Kashmir. His killing led to widespread protests in Kashmir Valley leading to the death of 90 people.

Barkati, was arrested in October, 2016 and was released four years later. He was arrested again in August 2023, in connection with a terror-funding case. His wife is in jail too.

Omar lost to jailed Engineer Rashid in LS polls

In the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, Abdul Rashid Sheikh, popularly known as Engineer Rashid, defeated Omar Abdullah by over one lakh votes in the Baramulla seat.

Rashid's win is a shocker since he contested the elections from Tihar jail, where he has been for the last five years facing charges under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

Rashid, a former two-time MLA, contested the election as an independent candidate. Since he was in jail, his two sons led his campaign, which started just two weeks before the Baramulla seat voted in the fifth polling phase on May 20.

On August 28, a Delhi court reserved its order on the bail plea of Lok Sabha MP Engineer Rashid in the terror funding case. The court is likely to be pronounce the order today.