J&K wraps up, with jump in voting from LS polls; boycott bastions turn out in strength

The wide voting for the 3 phases of J&K elections came to 63.45%, compared to wide figures of 57.89% for the Lok Sabha and 65.84% for the 2014 Assembly elections.

In the 3rd and last signifier Tuesday, voting was held successful 40 Assembly segments – 24 successful Jammu and 16 successful Kashmir. While the 16 seats of North Kashmir saw polling driblet by implicit 5% from 2014, successful the 24 segments of Jammu, determination was a somewhat steeper fall, astatine implicit 6%, from 2014.

The turnout successful Phases 1 and 2 was besides higher than successful the Lok Sabha elections. While 7 districts successful Phase 1 recorded 61.38% turnout, the fig was 60% successful the wide elections. Similarly, six districts successful Phase 2 recorded 57.31% wide polling compared to 52.17% successful the Lok Sabha polls.

However, arsenic compared to the 2014 Assembly elections, the 3rd signifier recorded a marked dip successful turnout, going up to 15%.

Like seen successful the different 2 phases of J&K elections, polling started briskly successful the greeting Tuesday, but the gait wore disconnected arsenic the hours went by.

In North Kashmir, which has 16 Assembly seats present compared to 15 earlier the 2022 delimitation, 11 seats saw a alteration successful canvass percent from 2014. The 4 wherever polling saw an summation were Sopore, Baramulla, Wagoora and Pattan.

Compared to the caller Lok Sabha polls, 14 seats saw an summation successful polling. The 2 seats that saw a autumn were Handwara and Langate, with polling dropping by 3% each.

By 8.30 am, 117 of the 1,396 votes had already been polled astatine Jalal Sahib, a neighbourhood successful aged Baramulla municipality that stayed distant from polling booths successful the past. By the extremity of the day, Baramulla constituency had polled 54% votes, a leap of astir 15% from 2014.

In the Lok Sabha polls, Engineer Rashid had won the Barmaulla spot defeating veterans Omar Abdullah and Sajad Lone. One of the candidates for these polls from Baramulla was Rashid’s brother, contesting from the Langate Assembly segment. Here, too, polling was brisk, with 480 retired of 973 votes polled by midday, though by the end, Langate was among the laggards.

“We are voting due to the fact that we person issues, individuality issues, developmental issues and employment issues,” said Ghulam Rasool, a resident.

By a small aft noon, 590 votes of the full 1,901 had been polled successful far-off Zachaldara colony of Handwara, from wherever People’s Conference Sajad Lone is up against the National Conference’s Chowdhary Ramzan. Like Langate, successful Handwara, polling was little than the Lok Sabha polls.

Polling, however, remained dilatory successful Sopore, a separatist stronghold that has boycotted elections implicit the past 3 decades. By 2 pm, 362 retired of 1,370 votes had been polled successful the 4 booths astatine Government Degree College. Flashing his inked finger, a elector declared: “This 1 is for the individuality of Kashmir… I person voted for the archetypal clip successful my life.”

While Sopore saw the lowest turnout, astatine 45%, this was a leap of astir 15% from the 2014 Assembly elections. In the Lok Sabha polls, Sopore saw 48% polling.

Bilal Ahmad (30) of Ferozpora, falling successful the Gulmarg Assembly segment, said helium didn’t ballot successful 2014, but feels “a consciousness of duty” this time. “More than immoderate erstwhile election, this decides our future. Kaagazon ki pareshaniyan hain (There are truthful galore issues with documents),” helium says, talking astir the trouble successful securing constabulary verification for passport and different services.

District-wise, determination was 59.84% polling successful the 7 seats of Baramulla (up from 57.71% successful 2014), 65.81% successful the six seats of Kupwara (down from 71.98% successful 2014) and 67.57% successful the 3 seats of Bandipore (down from 74.49% successful 2014). In Jammu region, the 11 seats saw a polling of 70.25% (down from 75.15 successful 2014). While Udhampur’s 4 seats saw 75.87% polling (a driblet from 76.68% successful 2014), Samba’s 3 seats saw 75.22% voting (down from 79.66%) and Kathua’s six seats 72.23% (down from 77.11%).

In a station connected X, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha congratulated the radical of J&K “for a grounds turnout successful the last signifier of the Assembly elections”, saying it was “a grounds to vibrant ideology successful J&K and people’s religion successful antiauthoritarian values”. “Transparent, escaped & just assembly polls 2024 volition beryllium written successful aureate letters,” helium wrote.

Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said: “J&K Assembly elections person marked a important deepening of ideology which volition echo successful the pages of history… ideology is taking basal much profoundly than ever before.”

An Election Commission connection said that J&K elections had passed disconnected without a instrumentality and bid incident, compared to 170 specified incidents successful 2014. No re-polls had to beryllium called, the EC said.