Suhail Khan
Baramulla, Sep 29: The campaign for the third phase of the assembly elections in North Kashmir concluded in a rather unsavory manner, marked by a series of personal attacks and abusive rhetoric. Candidates from various political parties resorted to mudslinging and launched scathing criticisms against their opponents, veering away from substantive discussions on issues that matter to the electorate.
Kashmir’s ‘politics’ not only surprised with the unexpected developments within the political parties since the dates for assembly elections were announced, but it has also taken an unpredictable turn where leaders in their campaigning have not only used abusive language but have also resorted to personal attacks on each other.
Abdul Satar, a political analyst, in a chat with The Web Story/The Varmul Post, said that North Kashmir has always been a stronghold of ‘politics’ and people have always voted, but this election has taken a turn that might not have been witnessed before, where such scenes were seen where the leaders, during their campaigning, have used rude language and have not been able to control their tongues.
He said that this ‘politics’ is being seen in a festive manner, but during the course of campaigning, it has not gone well for all the political parties, where they have adopted a stance that might not be acceptable, and have even violated all the Model Code of Conduct guidelines set by the Election Commission of India.
Muneeb-ul-Haq, a journalist, shared his views, I have covered many elections across the country. In kashmir, election campaigns were always decent but this time i saw a very aggressive campaign with dirty tactics ranging from character assassinations to revealing secrets of opponents. Barring a few candidates, mostly in election speeches the attacks were personal and unrelated.
Ali Mohammed, who has been in politics for decades, said, “As a political analyst, it’s clear that while the festive atmosphere of election campaigns energizes the democratic process, the increasing trend of personal attacks reflects a deeper erosion of political discourse. However, the heightened political awareness among the people signals a maturing electorate, more focused on substance than on rhetoric.”
Pertinently, the assembly elections in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir are taking place, with minute-by-minute political developments being witnessed, in which some find joy in the developments while others have their happiness snatched away. This even reveals the true colors of politics.
On August 16th, the Chief Election Commissioner of India, Rajiv Kumar, announced that the elections will be held in three phases in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
The Jammu and Kashmir assembly has 90 seats. The first phase of voting was held on September 18th for 24 seats in the districts of Pulwama, Anantnag, Shopian, Kulgam, Ramban, Kishtwar and Doda, which recorded a 61 percent turnout, while the second phase on September 25th saw voting for 26 seats in Ganderbal, Srinagar, Budgam, Poonch, Reasi and Rajouri districts, recording a 57.31 percent turnout.
The final phase on October 1st will have voting for 40 seats in Bandipora, Kupwara, Baramulla, Udhampur, Jammu, Samba and Kathua districts.
Meanwhile, politics heated up, and the political market became abuzz since the course so far in Jammu and Kashmir, while in the very first week, major political developments were seen, with leaders resigning from one party, rejoining, and ‘Ghar Wapsi’ (homecoming) becoming a trending topic. From the other side, people continued to stand by their favorite leaders, and this process accelerated. However, the most irritating and unfortunate part was the shocking violation of the Model Code of Conduct guidelines by the political leaders during their campaigning.
This assembly election is all set to complete with many questions left behind. Why have the MCC guidelines set by the Election Commission of India not been implemented on the ground???????
