More than 35,000 Kashmiri Pandits eligible for voting in first phase of elections in J&K

Jammu, Sep 17: More than 35,000 displaced Kashmiri Pandits from across the country are eligible to vote at 24 polling stations in the first phase of the three-phased Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday.

Polling is set to be held on Wednesday in 24 Assembly constituencies of seven districts to decide the fate of 219 candidates.

The displaced Kashmiri Pandits will exercise their right of franchise in 16 constituencies of south Kashmir’s Anantnag, Pulwama, Shopian and Kulgam districts.

"As many as 35,500 Kashmiri migrant voters are eligible to cast their votes at 24 special polling stations set up in Jammu, Udhampur and Delhi tomorrow for the first phase of elections," Relief and Rehabilitation Commissioner Dr Arvind Karwani told PTI.

Dr Karwani, who is supervising the election process, said 34,852 such voters are registered in Jammu to exercise their right of franchise in 19 polling stations here.

Similarly, 648 such Kashmiri migrant voters are registered in Udhampur and Delhi to cast their votes at a polling station in Udhampur and four such polling stations in Delhi, he said.

Although the majority of Kashmiri Pandit population lives in Delhi, a miniscule number of around 600 have registered for the elections.

"All arrangements have been made for free and fair polling tomorrow," the relief and rehabilitation commissioner said.

Security has been beefed up at all the polling stations and arrangements for elders, women and voters with disability have been put in place, he said.

“Kashmiri migrant voters opting to vote in person via electronic voting machines (EVMs) will have access to 24 polling stations, including 19 in Jammu, one in Udhampur, and four in Delhi,” he said.

The authorities, amid tight security, handed over the polling materials, including EVMs, to polling parties at Women's College in Jammu. The security forces and election parties are being deployed to their respective stations, the officials said.

There are six candidates from the community contesting in the first phase of elections.

Sanjay Saraf is contesting from the Anantnag seat as a Lok Jan Shakti Party (LJSP) candidate, BJP's Vir Saraf, Apni Party's M K Yogi, and Dileep Pandita, an independent, are in the fray from the Shangus-Anantnag seat. Rosy Raina and Arun Raina are contesting as the Republic Party of India and NCP candidates from the Rajpora and Pulwama seats.

Around 23.27 lakh voters, including 5.66 lakh youths, will decide the fate of leaders such as Iltija Mufti (37), the daughter of PDP president Mehbooba Mufti, who is contesting from Srigufwara-Bijbehara, AICC general secretary and two-time minister Gulam Ahmed Mir (Dooru), four-time MLA and veteran CPIM leader M Y Tarigami (Kulgam), former ministers -- Congress' Pirzada Sayeed (Anantnag) and NC's Sakina Itoo (D H Pora).