Polls not over, Farooq off on holiday to S Africa

Farooq has been quite conspicuously absent from the election scene in the state. This had even sparked off rumours of a rift between him and son Omar which both of them have repeatedly denied.

However, sources close to senior Abdullah said he had meticulously chalked out his plans for the future. He intends to shift to Delhi through the Rajya Sabha route. According to the sources, he is to be elected to the Upper House from J&K in November.

Abdullah will be dividing his time between Delhi and Srinagar. He has told his confidants that he would like to emerge on the state political scene in a new avatar, said sources close to him. He would like to concentrate on developmental and educational work in the state. This, he hopes to execute through his position as chairperson of the J&K Muslim Auqaf Trust, a resourceful organisation that manages places of worship and shrines for Muslims in Jammu and Kashmir.

However, National Conference sources do not rule out a new alliance between the National Conference and the BJP, both in J&K and at the Centre.

Farooq had told his friends that although he had felt hurt by personal attacks by leaders like Sushma Swaraj during the campaigning, NC should not be averse to the possibility of forming a government with the help of the BJP in the state, if the need arose.