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THE HIGHEST polling in almost three decades in Srinagar, at 38%, is being interpreted differently by different quarters. Now, all eyes are on what it means for the two remaining Lok Sabha seats of Kashmir, which will vote on May 20 and 25.
Last December, the Supreme Court set September 30, 2024 as the deadline for holding the Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir, which would mark its first in a decade.
Questions hover over the future of Sajad Lone’s Peoples Conference, Altaf Bhukari’s Apni Party, and Ghulam Nabi Azad’s Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) that were projected as an alternative to “dynastic politics” in Jammu and Kashmir and often labelled as the BJP’s “proxies” after their dismal show in the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls.
As Jammu and Kashmir plus Ladakh wrap up voting for the Lok Sabha elections on Saturday – the first significant polls in the state since the abrogation of Article 370 – the three regions saw distinct polls issues. But one was common – insecurity over jobs and land, in the wake of the scrapping of the special status of the erstwhile state.
When Mian Altaf Ahmad expressed his indecision about contesting from the Anantnag-Rajouri parliamentary seat over health concerns last month, a perturbed Omar Abdullah rushed over to his home village Babanagri, a spiritual seat of the Gujjars. An hour-long meeting later, Altaf issued a video statement saying he is ready to contest.
“Twenty five years ago, I trusted you with the most precious thing in my life, my mother,” says Iltija Mufti, to thunderous applause at Koot, a remote village in Verinag. “Mehbooba ji joined politics when I was a kid, I couldn’t even tie my shoelaces. She told us, ‘I am the leader of my people first, then your mother’. Today, I have come to ask for a precious thing of yours – your vote.”
As Abrar Rashid raises the slogan “Tihar ka badla (The revenge for Tihar)…”, over 500 men and women respond with a resounding “Vote se (By vote)”. “Zulm ka badla (The revenge for injustice)…,” he says, and they respond, “Vote se”. “Jail ka badla”… “Vote se”.
On the final day of his campaigning for the Baramulla Lok Sabha constituency Saturday, the National Conference (NC)’s vice-president and candidate Omar Abdullah held road shows across Budgam district in Central Kashmir.