Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Saturday slammed the Congress for joining hands with the National Conference (NC) ahead of three-phase Jammu and Kashmir Assembly polls starting September 18.

Speaking to reporters, Singh accused the Congress of compromising national unity and security to satisfy its desire for power and questioned the party's motives in allying with the NC.

"The Congress, which has repeatedly risked the nation's unity and security for power, has again exposed its ulterior motive by allying with the Farooq Abdullah's NC ahead of the J&K polls," Singh said.

The National Conference on Thursday announced a pre-poll alliance with the Congress for the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections, the first since the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019.

The 90-member assembly elections will take place in three phases - September 18, September 25, and October 1, with the vote counting scheduled for October 4.

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