Parties in J&K want to hold the assembly and Lok Sabha elections simultaneously as the EC team examines polling preparations

As the Election Commission began a two-day consultation process with stakeholders to assess readiness for the 2018 general elections, political parties in Jammu and Kashmir requested the body to conduct assembly elections in the Union Territory concurrently with the Lok Sabha polls on Tuesday.

The Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) has also said that it is open to holding simultaneous elections for the Jammu and Kashmir legislature and the Lok Sabha.

The leader of the BJP, R. S. Pathania, said that his party is prepared for simultaneous elections. “Fraudsters who have spread smokescreen in the name of half-truths to befool the people of Jammu and Kashmir,” he said, were the NC, PDP, and Congress.

The head of the BJP demanded that polling places be set up outside of Union territory, where the Kashmiri Pandit community has been living, in order to make voting easier.

The team from the National Conference, headed by politician Nasir Aslam Wani, claimed to have convinced the Election Commission to schedule assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir concurrently with the Lok Sabha elections.

We informed the panel that Jammu and Kashmir’s people had been denied their democratic rights for ten years. Thus, there will be assembly elections in addition to Lok Sabha elections. We had a patient hearing from the commission,” Wani said.

According to him, holding two separate elections in a single year will negatively impact Jammu and Kashmir’s economy.

“The tourism industry is booming, and a massive influx of visitors is anticipated,” Thus, there will be a disruption in economic activity if there are two elections in a year, conducted separately. The prime minister also hopes for one country, one election. Thus, the National Conference leader told reporters, “Why not start that from Jammu and Kashmir.”

According to Wani, the party delegation notified the Election Commission that the public is worried about the impartiality of the impending elections. He feels that the EC must guarantee that every participant has an equal opportunity to succeed.

He went on, “The commission heard us patiently, but they have the final say in the matter.”

According to PDP leader Ghulam Nabi Lone Hanjura, his party also supported simultaneous assembly and Lok Sabha elections. After the discussion, he informed reporters, “The Election Commission will now have to make this decision.”

Following the political party meeting, district election officers and police superintendents will participate in a thorough assessment of election readiness by the poll panel, according to authorities.

Farooq Abdullah and Ghulam Nabi Azad, the former chief ministers, have brought up this issue throughout the last two weeks.

“I support holding elections in J and K at the same time. Elections by midnight, please. Assembly elections are more important to the people of J&K than parliamentary elections, according to NDTV, quoting Azad. Nasir Sogami, a prominent member of the NC, also called for concurrent elections in the union area.

Political circles in Jammu and Kashmir are increasingly pressing the Election Commission to schedule assembly elections here for just after the general elections, or right alongside the Lok Sabha elections.

The Chief Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir, Atal Dulloo, met with representatives of the police and civil administration on Saturday to educate them on the steps that must be followed to ensure the smooth running of the Lok Sabha elections in the Union Territory.

According to sources, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar and other members of the election panel arrived in Jammu and Kashmir on Monday for a three-day visit. Delegates from the Aam Admi Party, PDP, BJP, CPI (M), Congress, and the National Conference (NC) were met by them.

In order to start the process of regaining statehood, the Supreme Court has ordered that assembly elections be held in the Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh by September 30. For their six Lok Sabha seats, the territories will likewise conduct general elections in April or May.