BJP faces joint PAGD candidates in Raina’s seat
Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Dec 12: Thirty one Territorial Constituencies will go to polling in Phase-VI of the District Development Council (DDC) elections in Jammu and Kashmir tomorrow for which 7.48 lakh electorates are eligible to exercise their right to franchise.
In Jammu division, 17 seats spread over nine districts will have voting tomorrow which include Balakote in Poonch and Nowshera in Rajouri whose number of polling stations fall well within shelling and firing range on the Line of Control with Pakistan for which the concerned district administration was keeping the fingers crossed as the Pakistani troops resorted to shelling and firing in Balakote this evening for about half an hour.
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District Magistrate Poonch Rahul Yadav told the Excelsior that almost entire Balakote Territorial constituency especially 10 Panchayats fall within shelling and firing range of Pakistan. Shelling on LoC in Balakote this evening lasted just half an hour.
“We could have shifted polling stations to safer areas as part of Contingency Plan if there was shelling a day before. On the day of voting, the booths can’t be shifted if there is shelling,” Yadav said, adding the polling parties with ballot boxes have reached all polling stations by this evening.
SSP Poonch Ramesh Angral said there are eight polling stations which are ahead of the border fencing and all of them are in shelling zone. They include Middle School Dhabi Dhroti, MS Gulatoa, High School, Behrooti, MS Kanga, MS Ramlutta, HS Dharati, MS Sohala and Panchayat Ghar Gharati.
In Nowshera Territorial constituency of Rajouri district, about a dozen polling stations are within shelling and firing range of Pakistan, SSP Rajouri Chandan Kohli said, adding the LoC in Nowshera sector is peaceful for the past few days. However, he added, a Contingent Plan is in place in case of any misadventure by Pakistan.
Nowshera and Doongi seats in Rajouri district which will go to polls tomorrow have become political battlefield as they fall in Nowshera Assembly constituency held in the last House by BJP UT president Ravinder Raina. Significantly, People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) has fielded common candidates on both the seats.
BJP’s Mohinder Singh is being challenged by PAGD common candidate Manohar Singh in Nowshera and in Doongi, which is ST Reserve seat, BJP’s Advocate Asif Choudhary is facing Gupkar’s Khalid Hussain Choudhary among others.
Raina is, however, quite confident that the BJP will win both the seats with handsome margin.
“Gupkar Alliance has been rejected by the people. They will be rejected in the elections also. The BJP wave is sweeping not only Nowshera and Doongi but also other seats in Rajouri district and the party is posed to have its District Development Council (DDC) Chairman,” Raina, who had been aggressively campaigning in Jammu and Kashmir, declared and said he has seen massive enthusiasm among voters for the BJP across the Union Territory.
Seventeen seats which will go to polls in sixth phase of DDC elections in Jammu region tomorrow include Arnia and Bishnah in Jammu district, Rajpura and Ramgarh-C (Samba), Barnoti and Hiranagar (Kathua), Rajouri and Doongi (Nowshera), Balakote (Poonch), Jaganoo and Udhampur-I (Udhampur), Pouni and Pouni-A (Reasi), Sangaldan and Gandhri (Ramban) and Doda Ghat and Chiralla in Doda district. No seat will go to polls in Kishtwar district tomorrow.
Addressing a press conference here this evening, State Election Commissioner (SEC) KK Sharma said over 7.48 lakh voters will decide the fate of 245 candidates, including 100 women contestants, in the sixth phase of the DDC elections in J&K tomorrow.
The eight-phased maiden DDC elections commenced on November 28 and so far, voters in 190 constituencies, out of total 280 across 20 districts, have registered their choice.
While the first phase on November 28 recorded the highest 51.76 per cent polling, the subsequent phases on December 1, 4, 7 and 10 witnessed 48.62 per cent, 50.53 per cent, 50.08 per cent and 51.20 per cent polling, respectively.
The DDC polls are being held along with by-elections to Panchayats.
The counting of votes in the DDC elections is slated on December 22.
In the sixth phase of polling on Sunday, Sharma said the voting would be conducted in 31 constituencies, including 17 in Jammu division and 14 in Kashmir valley, from 7 am to 2 pm.
“A total of 245 candidates — 145 male and 100 female — are in fray, including 124 from Kashmir division and 121 from Jammu division,” Sharma said.
He said a total of 7,48,301 electorate, including 3,57,869 women are eligible to vote in this phase, for which 2,071 polling stations with 1,208 in Kashmir division and 863 in Jammu province have been set up.
For Sarpanch by-polls, Sharma said a total of 229 candidates, including 65 women, are contesting from 77 constituencies, out of total 127 seats in this phase, while a total of 740 candidates, including 180 women, are in fray for 334 vacant seats out of 1,548 vacant Panch constituencies.
Sharma said all necessary arrangements have been made to ensure peaceful polling besides special emphasis have been made to keep the voters safe from COVID-19.
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