Omar Abdullah Says He Was ‘Forced’ to Contest from Budgam, Hopes Aga Ruhullah Will Join Campaign Budgam, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday said he was compelled to contest from two constituencies, including Budgam, during the Assembly elections, but clarified that the people of Budgam were never kept in the dark about his decision. He reaffirmed that despite not representing the constituency later, Budgam was never sidelined in terms of development. Speaking to reporters in Budgam after National Conference candidate Aga Syed Mehmood filed his nomination papers for the Budgam Assembly by-election, Omar Abdullah said, “I was forced to fight on two seats in the Assembly elections, including Budgam. I never kept the people of Budgam in dark but was forced to contest from here.” He added that Budgam remained an important focus of his government’s development agenda. “Yet, Budgam was not left alone on the development front. We didn’t leave Budgam. I had no option but to leave one seat,” the Chief Minister said. Responding to a question about whether former MLA Aga Ruhullah Mehdi would be part of the campaign for the National Conference candidate, Omar Abdullah said, “Aga Mehmood has already made it clear, and our candidate hopes that he (Aga Ruhullah) will campaign for the party.”