Srinagar: National Conference (NC) Lok Sabha MP Ruhullah Mehdi on Monday said the assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir were delayed in 2018 under a “conspiracy” to facilitate the “backdoor” abrogation of Article 370. “The Constitution says that elections have to be held within six months of any seat getting vacant or if the Assembly is dissolved. In 2018, when the Assembly was dissolved here, this regime delayed the election, which was illegal and unconstitutional,” Mehdi told reporters in central Kashmir’s Budgam district. The MP accused the BJP of not working for the national interest but for the party. “It should be clear to everyone that this regime does not see the national interest but party interest.