Overview
- PDP’s Aga Syed Muntazir Mehdi won Budgam with 21,576 votes, defeating NC’s Aga Syed Mehmood who polled 17,098, a margin of 4,478.
- BJP’s Devyani Rana secured Nagrota with 42,350 votes, beating JKNPP’s Harsh Dev Singh by 24,647, as the NC’s Shamim Begum finished third with 10,872.
- The Budgam result marks the first time the National Conference has lost the constituency, long considered its stronghold.
- Budgam’s outcome was widely read as a verdict on unfulfilled pledges on jobs, power meters, electricity and LPG subsidies, with NC MP Aga Ruhullah Mehdi refusing to campaign.
- The PDP’s tally in the J&K Assembly rises to four seats, dealing a setback to the NC-led government’s standing after its candidate also trailed badly in Nagrota.