Farooq Abdullah with son Omar. File picture

Srinagar, Aug. 28: In the power struggle within Kashmir’s “first family”, Omar Abdullah has lost the first round to papa Farooq.

The National Conference president has yielded to Farooq Abdullah’s desire to be the party’s candidate for chief minister in the next Assembly elections, scheduled in August nest year.

Farooq had set off ripples last week by declaring he wanted to be the NC’s top candidate. A surprised Omar, who had repeatedly said he would be the NC’s man for chief minister, initially said the party was yet to take a decision.

Now he has laid the controversy to rest, saying: “There is no confusion. Dr Sahib (Farooq) is our chief ministerial candidate. The decision is in the best interests of our party.”

The decision follows another surprise announcement by Farooq a few weeks ago, when he signalled his comeback to the state’s political landscape by saying he would contest the next Assembly elections.

Ahead of the 2002 state polls, Omar had taken up the party’s reins and the senior Abdullah did not contest the elections.

But the party received a drubbing from its rival, the People’s Democratic Party, thanks to an anti-incumbency wave. Its tally fell to 25 seats in the 87-member House.

The worst shock for the party was Omar’s defeat from Ganderbal constituency, a traditional stronghold that had repeatedly sent his father and grandfather, Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, to the Assembly.

The defeat paved the way for the formation of a coalition government, made up of the PDP, the Congress and several smaller groupings, which will complete five years in office in November.

Party sources said “Omar’s change of heart’’ came after he realised he could not alone steer the party to electoral success.

“His style is dictatorial, which has led to resentment among the old guard. There is a generation gap, which he has not succeeded in bridging,’’ a party leader said.

Farooq, on the other hand, had given his ministers a free hand when he was chief minister. Most senior party leaders, who have worked with him for decades, have been trying to persuade him to return to politics.

In the next Assembly polls, the NC faces a tough fight from the PDP in rural Kashmir. Even in the cities and towns, which generally boycott the polls completely thus helping the NC, the PDP is working on small pockets whose votes could be crucial.

With just a year left for the elections, most political parties in the state have thrown themselves into the pre-electoral exercise.