Omar Abdullah made attempts to form alliance with BJP in 2014: Devender Singh Rana

Once a close confidant of National Conference (NC) vice-president Omar Abdullah, senior BJP leader Devender Singh Rana on Tuesday made startling claims that the NC had made multiple attempts to form an alliance with the BJP after the 2014 Assembly elections.

Rana, who is also a BJP candidate from the Nagrota constituency for the Assembly elections, made these claims during a press conference. Rana had won from the Nagrota seat in 2014 on the NC ticket. He joined the BJP in October 2021.

Rana said after securing 15 seats, Omar Abdullah went to New Delhi where he met the then party’s national chief Amit Shah and RSS functionary Ram Madhav to request for an alliance in J&K.

The PDP had won 28 seats, while the BJP won 25 seats in the 2014 Assembly elections. The BJP had formed an alliance with the PDP at that time.

Rana stated that Omar Abdullah was now trying to create a narrative that all political parties of Kashmir, excluding NC, were part of the BJP whereas the “reality was entirely opposite”.

Rana said: “Now, you (Omar) are saying Ram Madhav is close to the PDP, but the truth is that you repeatedly approached top BJP and RSS leaders to form the government in J&K”.

“In 2014, when the NC had 15 MLAs, Omar went to Delhi and met senior-most leaders of the BJP and also knocked the doors of RSS leaders and offered unconditional support to the BJP for forming the government in J&K,” he said. He claimed that Omar also agreed for a full-term Chief Minister of the BJP in J&K.

“I also accompanied Omar that time and he offered on the table unconditional support to the BJP for forming government in J&K,” Rana said.

Rana said the BJP, however, rejected his proposal. He further claimed that after the rejection by the BJP, Omar repeatedly kept on approaching the BJP top leadership and also knocked the doors of RSS for government formation in J&K.

“The NC wanted to be in power in J&K at any cost. After the death of former Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, Omar Abdullah again started approaching top BJP and RSS leaders in Delhi offering unconditional support to the BJP for government formation in J&K,” Rana claimed.

Rana also alleged that the NC would release jailed stone-pelters which shows that it wants unrest in J&K.