J&K poll stays work in progress; BJP wary of Opposition unity

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By Our Special Correspondent

New Delhi, February 21: Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections may be a long way down the road. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) appears weighing the consequences of the Opposition unity in the Union Territory of J&K.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address from the Red Fort in 2021 had said that the Assembly elections in J&K would be held soon. Political observers had decoded that the polls in J&K could be held within a year from the speech of Modi. But there are still no signs of the poll in the UT.

The BJP national general secretary Tarun Chugh, when he was asked specifically for a timeline on holding of the Assembly election in J&K, said: “The Delimitation Commission has given its report. Now, there is a process thereafter. The electoral roll will be prepared. The voters list will be released for the public to raise objections. The political parties can object to the addition and deletion of voters in the list.” He was speaking at a conclave hosted by Gulistan TV.

Chugh didn’t commit to a specific timeline, but dropped enough hints that the elections are not in sight too soon. He was heard repeating the need for building “narrative” by the people for “true democracy in J&K where the chief minister will not be from the families of Abdullahs, Muftis and Nehrus”.

The Supreme Court had recently endorsed the constitution of the Delimitation Commission, which was challenged in the apex court. The commission drew the Assembly constituencies on the basis of the 2011 Census. This was also an objection raised by the Opposition parties in the apex court since delimitation in the country had been carried out on the basis of the 2001 Census.

While J&K was reduced to the status of a Union territory following the enactment of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, it was provided with an Assembly unlike Ladakh. “PM Modi had said that the Assembly elections will be held after the conclusions of the block development and district development council elections, and now the process of the making of the electoral roll will start,” Chugh said, while stressing that the Modi government has been instrumental in ensuring investments worth Rs 60,000 crores in the UT.

His repeatedly stated that the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), the National Conference (NC) and the CPI (M) had not put up candidates against each other in the DDC elections suggested in clear indications of them joining hands. Congress’ concluding ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ in Sri Nagar had seen participation of the top leadership of the NC and the PDP.