This was the first Assembly poll in the UT after the abrogation of Article 370. The voting was held in 16 Assembly segments in south Kashmir and eight in the Jammu region.
According to the poll officials, the highest voting of 80.14 per cent took place in Kishtwar district while Pulwama district in south Kashmir recorded the lowest polling of 46.65 per cent.
J&K Chief Electoral Officer PK Pole said no untoward incident was reported from any Assembly segment.
“The polling percentage in the four districts of south Kashmir — Shopian, Pulwama, Anantnag and Kulgam — used to be low. However, in the recent Lok Sabha elections, it went up…,” said Pole, adding that this time, Shopian and Pulwama districts saw the highest voter turnout in seven elections. These four districts, which had voted under the fear of the gun amid a poll boycott call by separatists in the 2014 Assembly elections, for the first time, saw long queues outside polling stations without any fear or violence.
Several areas, which used to witness incidents of stone throwing, also saw people come out to cast their ballot.
For example, at a polling station in Bandzoo Pulwama in the Rajpora Assembly constituency, people started trickling in since morning to cast their vote. By 9.50 am, of the 991 voters, 111 had cast their ballot. “Had it been like the earlier (2014) elections, you may have been welcomed by stones, but this time, people are coming to vote as they have been waiting for this moment for a long time,” Fayaz Ahmad, a local resident, told The Tribune.
Pulwama district, which saw a voter turnout of 46.65 per cent, had recorded 44 per cent voting in 2014. As people came out to vote, they said their issues ranged from “getting their rights back” to development. They said they had come to elect candidates who could become their voice. Many residents said they wanted to bring an “end to the long bureaucratic rule”.
Shopian district recorded 53.64 per cent turnout today against 48 per cent in 2014. “It’s true that this Assembly will have less powers, but at least we will have our MLAs who will raise our issues such as getting back our rights, which have been snatched from us all these years,” Mohammad Aslam, a fruit grower, said. Kulgam recorded 62.46 per cent voting against 59 per cent in 2014. “I want to see more development in my district…that’s why I have come out to vote,” said Nuzhat, a first-time voter in the Damhal Hanji Pora Assembly segment. “It is important to choose the right candidate,” she said. Among the four south Kashmir districts, Anantnag saw a lower voter turnout than 2014. The district recorded 55.96 per cent voting against 60 per cent in 2014.
The district, which has seven Assembly segments, is considered to be a bastion of the PDP. “In the coming two phases, we are hopeful that the poll percentage will increase,” said Pole.
Despite recent terror attacks, Kishtwar district of the Jammu division witnessed massive voter turnout on Wednesday. The Inderwal constituency in the district witnessed 80.06 per cent polling till 5 pm.
Other two constituencies - Kishtwar and Padder-Nagseni - in the district witnessed 80.14 per cent and 76.80 per cent polling, respectively.
Out of the total 24 constituencies across J&K, eight went to polls in Jammu division on Wednesday. The polling percentage in the eight constituencies in three mountainous districts of Jammu division was more as compared to Kashmir division. Several remote areas in these three districts can only be accessed on foot.
In Doda district, Bhaderwah witnessed 65.27 per cent polling, while Doda recorded 71.34 per cent voting. Doda West saw 74.14 per cent turnout. In Ramban constituency, 70.55 per cent voting was recorded, while in Banihal, 68 per cent votes were polled.
Doda, Kishtwar and Ramban districts are collectively called as Chenab Valley.Interestingly, Doda West and Padder-Nagseni seats were formed after delimitation in 2022 and went to the polls for the first time.
There were long queues of voters in all these districts, which went to the polls in the first phase of elections. All eight seats witnessed multi-cornered contests between BJP, Congress-NC and Independent candidates.
Yusuf Shafi Mir, a resident of Inderwal, said the elections were taking place in J&K after a gap of 10 years. “People are fed up of the bureaucracy and want their own people to run the government. This was the reason that long queues were witnessed at the polling booths in the region. We want a change so that the government listens to us” he said.
The Inderwal constituency, which witnessed maximum voting, has an X-factor in the form of GM Saroori, who is a three-time MLA from the seat. He is a former Congress leader who joined the Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP), but is contesting as an independent this time. Mohd Zafarullah from the Congress and Taraq Hussain Keen from the BJP are other contenders from the seat.
Doda seat also has an AAP candidate Mehraj Malik along with a Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) candidate Abdul Majid Wani. The seat also saw a friendly contest between the NC and Congress. Khalid Najib Suharwardy was contesting on the NC ticket, while Sheikh Riyaz Ahmed was fighting elections from the Congress. This is one of the seats where a five-cornered contest was witnessed as BJP candidate Gajay Singh Rana also holds sway.
From the Banihal constituency, Vikar Rasool Wani was the Congress candidate, while Sajad Shaheen was the NC candidate.
Pandurang K Pole, Chief Electoral Officer, J&K, said there were many remote areas in Kishtwar, Doda and Ramban district from where it takes time for polling parties to return to the reception centres. “It is expected that there will be a marginal rise in the polling percentage after the polling parties are back. There are chances of corrections in the figures,” said the CEO.
Doda and Kishtwar have witnessed several terror attacks and encounters in the past one year. The region was comparatively peaceful, but it has now become a concern for security forces.
Inderwal constituency in the district witnessed 80.06 per cent polling till 5 pm on Wednesday.
Other two constituencies — Kishtwar and Padder-Nagseni — in the district witnessed 80.14 per cent and 76.80 per cent polling, respectively.
In Doda district, Bhaderwah witnessed 65.27 per cent polling, while Doda recorded 71.34 per cent voting. Doda West saw 74.14 per cent turnout. In Ramban constituency, 70.55 per cent voting was recorded, while in Banihal, 68 per cent votes were polled.
