Former chief minister Omar Abdullah was on Thursday unanimously elected as the National Conference (NC) legislature party leader even as four independent lawmakers extended their support to the party. He was expected to stake the claim to form the next government after a meeting with allies including Congress on Friday.
The NC-Congress swept to power on Tuesday winning 49 seats in the 90-member assembly. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) bagged 29 seats.
Abdullah thanked the NC lawmakers for electing him as their leader. He added they were in talks to get the letter of support from the Congress. “Four independent lawmakers have also extended their support to the National Conference. Now the number of the NC is 42 plus four independents. After receiving the letter from Congress, we will go to the Raj Bhavan to stake claim to form the government.”
Four independent legislators Satish Sharma, Rameshwar Singh, Pyare Lal Sharma, and Choudhary Akram attended the NC legislature party meeting.
NC leader Ahsan Pardesi said another independent lawmaker Muzaffar Iqbal Khan was also expected to join them. “We are in contact with him as well but he could not come today [Thursday],” he said.