Jammu & Kashmir National Conference
Encyclopedia
The Jammu & Kashmir National Conference is a State political party in the state of Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir is the northernmost state of India. It is situated mostly in the Himalayan mountains. Jammu and Kashmir shares a border with the states of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab to the south and internationally with the People's Republic of China to the north and east and the...

, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

. Led at the time of Indian Independence in 1947 by Sheikh Abdullah, it dominated electoral politics in the state for many decades. It has been led subsequently by the Sheikh's son Farooq Abdullah
Farooq Abdullah
Farooq Abdullah , born 21 October 1937 in Soura, Jammu & Kashmir, India), is the son of Sheikh Abdullah, is a doctor of medicine and has served as chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir on several occasions since 1982. He is married to Molly, a nurse of British origin...

(1981-2002)his son Omar Abdullah
Omar Abdullah
Omar Abdullah , born 10 March 1970 in United Kingdom, is an Indian Kashmiri politician and the scion of Kashmir's 'first family', the Abdullah family who became the 11th and the youngest Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir after forming a government in coalition with the Congress party, on...

(2002-2009) and in 2009 Farooq Abdullah
Farooq Abdullah
Farooq Abdullah , born 21 October 1937 in Soura, Jammu & Kashmir, India), is the son of Sheikh Abdullah, is a doctor of medicine and has served as chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir on several occasions since 1982. He is married to Molly, a nurse of British origin...

 was again made the President of JKNC.

The pre-independence period

In October, 1932, Sheikh Abdullah founded the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference
All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference
The All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference is a major political party of Azad Kashmir.- History :The All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference was founded as a political party in August 1932 in Srinagar...

. On June 11, 1939 it was renamed as the All Jammu and Kashmir National Conference. The National Conference was affiliated to the All India States Peoples Conference
All India States Peoples Conference
The All India States Peoples' Conference was a political organization in India during the British Raj. The first session of the organisation was held in Bombay in December 1927.-Organisation:...

 and in 1947 Sheikh Abdullah was elected president of it. In 1946, the National Conference launched an intensive agitation against the state government. It was directed against the Maharaja. The slogan of the agitation was "Quit Kashmir".

The post-independence period

In the elections held in September, 1951, National Conference won all 75 seats of the Constituent assembly of Jammu and Kashmir
Constituent assembly of Jammu and Kashmir
Constituent assembly of Jammu and Kashmir was a body of representatives elected in 1951 to write the constitution of Jammu and Kashmir.-Background:...

. Sheikh Abdullah remained the prime minister till his arrest on August 9. 1953 on the grounds of conspiracy against the state of India, as he began to openly express views in support of Kashmiri independence from India. In 1953 Sheikh Abdullah was dismissed and Bakshi Ghulam Mohammad
Bakshi Ghulam Mohammad
Bakshi Ghulam Mohammed ruled the State of Jammu and Kashmir as Prime Minister for eleven years from 1953 to 1964.Bakshi Ghulam Mohammed was educated at C.M.S Tyndale Biscoe School. He started his career as a school teacher in far flung areas of Jammu and Kashmir like Skardu and Leh and later...

 became the Prime minister of the state.

In 1965 the National Conference became the Jammu and Kashmir branch of the Indian National Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...

. Sheikh Abdullah was again arrested in 1965 until 1968 due to his pro-independence stances that were termed as conspiracy against the state. Sheikh Abdullah's splinter Plebiscite Front
Plebiscite Front
The Plebiscite Front was a political party in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir that called for a "popular plebiscite" to decide if the state should remain part of India, join Pakistan or become independent...

 faction later appropriated the name of the original party when Abdullah returned to power in February 1975. In 1977, National Conference led by him won the state assembly elections, and Sheikh Abdullah became the chief minister. His son, Farooq Abdullah
Farooq Abdullah
Farooq Abdullah , born 21 October 1937 in Soura, Jammu & Kashmir, India), is the son of Sheikh Abdullah, is a doctor of medicine and has served as chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir on several occasions since 1982. He is married to Molly, a nurse of British origin...

 succeeded him as the Chief Minister on his death on September 8, 1982. In June, 1983 elections, the JKNC led by Farooq Abdullah again won a comfortable majority. In July, 1984 Farooq's brother-in-law Ghulam Mohammad Shah
Ghulam Mohammad Shah
Ghulam Mohammad Shah or G.M. Shah was an Indian politician who was Chief Minister of the state of Jammu and Kashmir from 2 July 1984 to 6 March 1986. He succeeded his brother-in-law Farooq Abdullah...

 split the party. Acting on the behest of the central government, the Governor, Jagmohan dismissed Farooq as a Chief Minister and installed Ghulam Mohammad Shah
Ghulam Mohammad Shah
Ghulam Mohammad Shah or G.M. Shah was an Indian politician who was Chief Minister of the state of Jammu and Kashmir from 2 July 1984 to 6 March 1986. He succeeded his brother-in-law Farooq Abdullah...

 in his place. His government was dismissed in March, 1986 and President's rule was imposed. In 1987 state assembly elections, the JKNC, which formed an alliance with the Congress Party
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...

 won the majority and Farooq again became the Chief Minister. But he was dismissed again in 1990 by the Union Government led by Vishwanath Pratap Singh and President's rule was imposed in the state. In Jammu and Kashmir state assembly elections in 1996, the National Conference led by Farooq made another political comeback by winning 57 seats out of total 87. But, in 2002 state assembly elections, it won only 28 seats. In December, 2008 state assembly elections no single party was able to get the majority. The JKNC led by Farooq's son Omar Abdullah
Omar Abdullah
Omar Abdullah , born 10 March 1970 in United Kingdom, is an Indian Kashmiri politician and the scion of Kashmir's 'first family', the Abdullah family who became the 11th and the youngest Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir after forming a government in coalition with the Congress party, on...

emerged as a single largest party, winning 28 seats. After the elections, on December 30, 2008 the JKNC formed an alliance with the Congress Party, which won 17 seats. Omar Abdullah became the Chief Minister of this coalition government on January 5, 2009.

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