Overview
- Election Commission figures show PDP’s Aga Syed Muntazir Mehdi won Budgam with 21,576 votes, defeating NC’s Aga Syed Mehmood on 17,098 for a 4,478-vote margin.
- Budgam had been an NC stronghold since the early 1970s and was vacated when Chief Minister Omar Abdullah chose to retain Ganderbal after the 2024 polls.
- Reports attribute the Budgam upset to anti-incumbency tied to jobs, smart power meters, promised free electricity units, subsidised LPG and reservation policy, with NC MP Aga Ruhullah declining to campaign.
- In Nagrota, BJP’s Devyani Rana—daughter of late MLA Devender Singh Rana—won with 42,350 votes, defeating JKNPP’s Harsh Dev Singh on 17,703 as NC’s Shamim Begum finished third with about 10,872.
- Turnout contrasted at roughly 50% in Budgam and about 75% in Nagrota, and the outcomes dent NC’s standing while reinforcing BJP strength in Jammu and giving PDP a lift in central Kashmir.