Ishtiyaq Kar
Srinagar, Mar 16 (KNS): Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar clarified on Saturday that the Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir will be scheduled after the Lok Sabha polls due to security concerns, as organizing both simultaneously is deemed unfeasible.
Prior to the announcement of the Lok Sabha polls by the Election Commission of India, all political parties in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir harbored hopes that the long-awaited Assembly polls could be conducted either independently or concurrently with the Lok Sabha elections later this year.
When queried about the decision to defer the Assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir, the CEC highlighted the logistical challenge of providing security forces to each candidate in the Union Territory.
This task becomes significantly complex when elections are concurrently conducted across the nation.
News agency KNS reported that Kumar also elucidated that the amendment to the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act in December 2023, following a delimitation exercise, set a timeline for the Election Commission (EC) to act upon.
Detailing the complexities further, Kumar explained, “The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act was passed in 2019. There was a provision for 107 seats, 24 of which were in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Then the delimitation commission came and there was a change in the seats. The reorganisation Act and delimitation were not in sync. That happened in December 2023. So our meter started running from December 2023.”
“Despite the preference of all political parties in Jammu and Kashmir for simultaneous Assembly and parliamentary polls, the administrative machinery unanimously told the commission not to conduct both concurrently due to the substantial logistical demands”.
“With every Assembly segment potentially hosting 10-12 candidates, amounting to over 1,000 candidates in total, ensuring adequate security arrangements posed a formidable challenge,” he said.
Nevertheless, CEC Rajiv Kumar reiterated the commitment to holding Assembly elections promptly after the conclusion of the ongoing electoral process, assuring that the elections in Jammu and Kashmir will be prioritized thereafter.
The last Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir occurred in 2014, predating the reorganization of the erstwhile state into two Union territories on August 5, 2019. (KNS)