SRINAGAR: Amid speculation that government may dissolve the existing Panchayats in Jammu and Kashmir before the due date, the Panchayat Conference, a body of elected Panchayat and Sarpanch, has opposed the preponement of the polls, and demanded that panchayat polls to be held on its due date in December 2023.
The body also demanded that elections should be held on a non-party basis like the last time. All J&K Panchayat Conference chairman Shafiq Mir said, “The polls should be held on the due date. The term of the present panchayats will end in December 2023 and elections should be held on the due date,” he said.
The issuing of a schedule for revision of the panchayat electoral rolls by J&K State Election Commission (SEC) has led to speculation that the panchayat polls may be held before Assembly polls. As per the schedule, January 1, 2023 was fixed as the qualifying date for electoral rolls and the final panchayat electoral rolls would be published on February 10. This has led to speculations that the polls may be held in mid-2023 to “test the waters” in J&K post Article 370 revocation.