A gentle breeze of democracy has finally started wafting across J&K with the Election Commission of India announcing assembly polls in three phases, ending October 1. It is expected to strengthen after the new assembly is constituted and J&K’s statehood is restored.
The previous assembly was dissolved on November 21, 2018, following the collapse of the PDP-BJP government led by Mehbooba Mufti, when the state was placed under central rule. The security situation appears much better now with reduced militancy though it picked up in the Jammu region in the past few weeks.
Terror merchants and separatists have been put out of business, local hiring of youth by mujahideen outfits is dipping, all institutions are functioning normally with no strike calls or stoning, tourism is booming, and the valley just witnessed the most peaceful Amarnath yatra in recent memory.
Holding elections in three phases as against five in the previous assembly polls 10 years ago itself is an index of the improvement in the overall security grid. Assembly elections could have easily been conducted simultaneously with the general elections a few months ago when polling was held in five phases in J&K, had the Election Commission been confident of pulling it off successfully.
However, the price J&K had to pay for the turnaround was staggering. Even fundamental rights were extinguished in 2019, making it a global human rights hotspot before the curbs were slowly eased. J&K’s special powers under Articles 370 and 35A were smoked out by Parliament, and the state bifurcated into two Union Territories.
The Supreme Court took an inordinately long time to adjudicate on the abrogation of Section 370 and imposed the September 30 deadline for fresh assembly polls. The record turnout in this year’s general elections showed people’s urge to participate in the democratic exercise. They defeated big hitters like Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti while electing jailed separatist Engineer Rashid.
The polling percentage in the assembly elections is expected to go up further as local issues like development, prices and jobs have more resonance among the voters than national ones.
As many as 90 seats will be up for grabs. With the polls being held under international glare, the challenge for the Election Commission is to make it truly free and fair. Powerful regional parties forcing multi-cornered contests add an element of uncertainty to the whole exercise and could leave the field open for post-poll maneuvering.