7 independents emerge victorious

Jammu: Seven independent candidates have emerged victorious in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly polls, marking an increase from the 2014 elections when three such candidates had won.
Satesh Sharma, who left the Congress and contested as an independent from the Chhamb seat of Jammu region, won the election by defeating BJP candidate Rajeev Sharma with a margin of 6,929 votes.Satesh Sharma, 42, who is son of two-time MP and former Congress minister Madan Lal Sharma, polled 33,985 votes.
Former deputy chief minister and Congress candidate Tara Chand, who had won this seat three times, finished third with 16,449 votes.
In Inderwal, independent candidate Payare Lal Sharma defeated veteran leader Gulam Mohammad Saroori by a narrow margin of 643 votes. Sharma received 14,195 votes, while Saroori, also an independent candidate, secured 13,552 votes. Saroori had previously won this seat twice.
In Bani, independent candidate Dr Rameshwar Singh defeated BJP nominee and former MLA Jewan Lal by 2,048 votes. Singh secured 18,672 votes, while Lal polled 16,624 votes.
In the Surankote assembly segment, independent candidate and National Conference rebel Choudhary Mohammad Akram defeated Congress' Mohammad Shahnawaz by a margin of 8,851 votes. Akram received 34,201 votes.
Muzaffar Iqbal Khan won the Thanamandi seat with a margin of 6,179 votes against BJP candidate Mohmmad Iqbal Malik. Khan garnered 32,645 votes.
Khursheed Ahmed Sheikh secured 25,984 votes and defeated Peoples Conference's Irfan Sultan Panditpuri by a margin of 1,602 votes in the Langate assembly seat.
Similarly, Shabir Ahmed Kullay defeated National Conference candidate Sheikh Mohmmad Rafi by a margin of 1,207 votes in the Shopian seat.
A total of 346 independent candidates contested in the J&K Assembly elections, with 339 of them failing to win.
Three and four candidates were elected to the J&K Assembly in 2014 and 2008 elections, respectively. pti