Polls to be held in three phases on Sept 18, Sept 25, Oct 1
Lone Naira
Srinagar, August 16: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Friday announced the dates for the assembly elections for the state of Haryana and for the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K). This is the first election in J&K after its special status and statehood were revoked in 2019.
Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar accompanied by Election Commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and Dr. Sandhu during the press conference announced that the polling for the election to the 90-seat Jammu and Kashmir assembly will be held in three phases and the voting will conducted on September 18 for constituencies in first phase.
Jammu and Kashmir has 87.09 lakh voters, including 42.6 lakh women, across 90 constituencies; and voting will take place across 11,838 polling stations, CEC Kumar said while announcing the poll body’s schedule.
The CEC also announced that the electoral rolls for Jammu and Kashmir and Haryana will be finalised on August 20 and 27, respectively.
“We recently visited Jammu & Kashmir and Haryana to take stock of the election preparation in these places. A great enthusiasm was seen among the people. They wanted to participate in the election process. People want elections to be conducted there as early as possible…The long queues at the polling booth in J&K during the Lok Sabha elections are proof that people not only want change but also want to raise their voice by becoming a part of that change,” CEC Kumar said.
He said that the Lok Sabha polls in the Union Territory were a triumph of “ballot over bullet”.
Mr Kumar emphasised that the Lok Sabha elections, which were held in five phases between 19 April and May 25, had seen historic participation, with a voter turnout of 58.58%. The participation and the queues of voters, he said, was proof that people not only wanted change but wanted to be a part of the change.
“We went to Jammu and Kashmir to take stock of the poll preparedness recently. You would remember the long queues at polling stations during the Lok Sabha elections, which presented a spectacle of the strength of democracy. They weren’t just long queues, they represented the hopes of the people and their desire to script a new future for themselves. Everybody wanted to participate and prove a point that they were in the queue not only to vote but to demonstrate a very strong desire to ensure that democracy flourishes in this area,” Mr Kumar said in Hindi.
“This showed that the people not only wanted change but wanted to write their own destinies by being part of the change. This was purely a triumph of ballot over bullet. The three Lok Sabha constituencies in the Valley saw a voter turnout of 51%. The people of the Valley said no to violence and decided to make their voices heard through votes. The people of the Union Territory chose the ballot over bullet and boycott,” he added.
The Election Commission said not only had youth made their voices heard at the polling booth, but women had done so too, with the Union Territory seeing a turnout of 56.38% among them.
The Kashmir Valley also reached a new peak in terms of poll participation, seeing a 30-point increase compared to 2019.
The last assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir were held in 2014, leading to the formation of a coalition government by the PDP and the BJP. The coalition collapsed in 2018, and in 2019, the BJP initiated the move to abrogate Article 370, splitting Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories: Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.
First Assembly Elections In 10 Years
In December last year, while delivering its verdict on Article 370, a five-judge Constitutional bench of the Supreme Court had directed the Election Commission to hold Assembly polls in the UT by September 30. It had also asked the Centre to restore statehood at the earliest.
The UT has been without an elected government for over six years and the last Assembly elections were held in December 2014.
Jammu and Kashmir has also completed five years as a Union Territory this year. On August 5, 2019, the erstwhile state was bifurcated into two Union Territories and its special status under Article 370 was removed. It has been administered by the lieutenant governor since then.
2014 J&K Assembly results (87 seats)
PDP: 28; BJP: 25; NC: 15; INC: 12; Others: 4; Independent: 3
Kashmir Election Buzz
Meanwhile, after the announcement of election dates, the stage is set for a thrilling electoral battle in Kashmir! Here’s how the key players are lining up:
National Conference (NC): Going solo, no alliances. Farooq Abdullah’s party aims to form the next government independently.
PDP: Mehbooba Mufti’s party also contesting alone, after a bitter rivalry with NC in the Lok Sabha elections.
BJP: Entering the fray in both Valley and Jammu, after a strategic absence in Lok Sabha polls.
Congress: Playing it cool, open to alliances before and after polls.
Other Parties: Apni Party, Peoples Conference, and Panthers Party to make their mark in key constituencies.
Political Leaders’ Reaction
Almost all the parties, including National Conference, Congress, BJP, CPI(M), and DPAP, thanked the Election Commission and said the poll announcement maintained the supremacy of the Supreme Court, which had set the September 30 deadline for the holding of the much-awaited assembly elections in J-K.
Reacting to the EC announcement, National Conference vice president and former chief minister Omar Abdullah said it was better late than never.
“Some time back, the ECI announced the schedule for assembly elections in J-K. People of J-K were waiting for this day for a long time. It is better late than never,” Abdullah told reporters in Srinagar.
Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party President Syed Altaf Bukhari, in a tweet, said, “Finally, the long-awaited schedule for the Jammu and Kashmir assembly polls has been announced. After nearly six years of waiting, the people will have the opportunity to exercise their most fundamental democratic right—the right to elect their own representatives. I hope the elections will be conducted in a free and fair manner. These elections present a vital opportunity for the people to reclaim their voice and shape their future. I hope that the voters will choose wisely, electing genuine representatives rather than those imposed over the decades. Jammu and Kashmir is at a crucial juncture, and only visionary and courageous leadership can safeguard the rights of its people.”
Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) President Ghulam Nabi Azad, in a tweet, said, “After a long wait of 10 years, we welcome the announcement of elections in J&K. This marks the longest gap since 1949 without assembly elections. I hope they will be free, fair, and fearless. I also urge the government to ensure the security of all party candidates!”
Senior CPI(M) leader M.Y. Tarigami also welcomed the announcement of a poll for Jammu and Kashmir.
“It is welcome that after a long time the EC has announced the schedule for elections to the assembly. We also welcome the statement of the EC that it will be a full democratic exercise by ensuring a level playing field for all parties and contestants, besides sufficient security for candidates and votes as well,” Tarigami said.
“Better late than never,” Senior Vice president of Pradesh Congress Committee Ravinder Sharma said, reacting to the announcement by the chief election commissioner Rajiv Kumar.
He said the people in J-K were waiting for the assembly elections for the past six years after the fall of the PDP-BJP government in June 2018.
J-K BJP president Ravinder Raina said, “we are highly grateful to ECI for the announcement of assembly elections in J-K.”
However, the party media incharge Pradeep Malhotra said they are fully prepared for the elections and requested the people to take part in the upcoming elections enthusiastically.
Malhotra expressed hope that the elections would be peaceful and violence-free.
AICC General Secretary G.A. Mir thanked the EC for announcing the polls in a region where the last assembly polls were held in 2014 and said the supremacy of the apex court, which had set September 30 as the deadline for the assembly elections in J-K, has been maintained.
He said the central government has promised assembly elections after delimitation, but the exercise was completed long back.
“People are eagerly waiting for the formation of the popular government, and the announcement of the polls reflects the aspirations of the people. We have full faith that people in J&K will take part in elections in a big way and elect their representatives,” he said.
