Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Nov 14: With just two days left for last date of filing of nomination papers for elections to four seats of Legislative Council from Panchayat quota, all major political parties have geared up their activities to finalise their candidates even as the Election Commission officials today received first nomination paper from an Independent candidate in Kathua district–six days after the election process was set into motion.
Official sources said Kartar Singh, Sarpanch from Adhat in Mahanpur block of Kathua district, today became first candidate to file nomination papers for the MLC elections. He filed his papers before Deputy Commissioner, Kathua, Zahida Khan, Assistant Returning Officer for the election. His nomination was supported by 10 Sarpanchs and Panchs, mandatory for filing nominations.
Sources said 40 candidates have so far obtained nomination forms from the offices of Returning Officers and Assistant Returning Officers. Twenty seven forms have been issued in Jammu division and 13 in Kashmir division, they added. The Election Commission was expecting majority of nominations on November 16, the last date for filing the papers. Scrutiny would take place on November 17 while candidates can withdraw their nomination papers by November 19. Polling will be held on December 3 and voting on December 6.
Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy and National Conference president Dr Farooq Abdullah reached Srinagar this afternoon and would be holding a meeting with Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who happened to be working president of the party and Sheikh Nazir Ahmad, general secretary and would also consult senior top brass of the party to finalized two candidates-one each for Jammu and Kashmir divisions for the election.
Under an agreement between National Conference and Congress, the two coalition partners, both the parties would contest two seats each-one each in Jammu and Kashmir divisions.
Reliable sources said the National Conference leadership was expected to finalise the two candidates, one each for the two divisions, by tomorrow to facilitate them to file their papers on November 16, the last date of nominations.
Sources said several names were under consideration of the National Conference for both the divisions and final choice would emerge by tomorrow. The names could be announced tomorrow or even in the morning of November 16. They added that problem with the National Conference was that they had so many aspirants and had to pick up only two of them-one each in the two divisions-for the contest.
“The rush of candidates was creating problems for the National Conference and the party leadership was finding it difficult to make it choice”, sources said.
Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare Ghulam Nabi Azad, a senior Congress leader and former Chief Minister from Jammu and Kashmir yesterday reached New Delhi from Dhaka, Bangladesh. PCC (I) Prof Saif-ud-Din Soz has also reached New Delhi from Jammu.
Sources said AICC (I) secretary, Incharge Jammu and Kashmir, Mohan Prakash, Mr Azad and Mr Soz would be holding discussions on the names of candidates before submitting the list to AICC (I) president Sonia Gandhi and her Political Secretary Ahmad Patel.
Sources said Azad group was pushing the name of two time MP from Jammu, Janak Raj Gupta for Jammu seat besides Arvinder Singh Micky, former Deputy Chairman, Legislative Council and Gharu Ram, former Minister while Soz group was batting for Mangat Ram Sharma, former Deputy Chief Minister and Mula Ram, former Minister.
Medical Education Minister RS Chib, whose term in the Legislative Council would expire in March next, was also trying for the party mandate. Another former Minister Gulchain Singh Charak was also in the race.
From Kashmir, Ghulam Nabi Monga and Muzaffar Parray, both vice presidents of the PCC (I), were vying for the party mandate. Monga had tied with National Conference leader and former Chief Secretary, Vijay Bakaya in the MLC elections but lost in the lottery.
Sources said the Congress high command could clear the names of two candidates by tomorrow so that they could file nomination papers on November 16.
People’s Democratic Party (PDP) leadership including former Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and PDP president Mehbooba Mufti along with other senior leaders held meetings during last two days and discussed various names for the elections. The PDP has already decided to contest all four seats.
The names under consideration of the party included Ved Mahajan, former MLC and Gurmeet Singh (son of former MP Tarlok Singh Bajwa) for Jammu seats and Peerzada Hussain and Saif-ud-Din Bhat for Kashmir seats. Various other names were also being considered by the PDP and a final decision would be taken anytime now.
The BJP has short-listed three candidates for Jammu division and two of them would file nomination papers after their names were cleared. The candidates, whose names have been short-listed included Col Uttam Singh, Rashpal Verma and Dr Dev Raj Sharma. For Kashmir division, the BJP has cleared the name of Ghulam Nabi Dar. It would be fielding a party leader from Kargil as its second candidate for Kashmir division.
The National Panthers Party (NPP) would announce its four candidates tomorrow. NPP chairman Harshdev Singh said of four candidates, the party would be fielding one woman in Jammu division.
Rebel BJP group leader and former Union Minister Prof Chaman Lal Gupta said the candidates for the MLC elections should be from amongst the Sarpanchs/Panchs as four seats were meant for Panchayat quota in the Legislative Council.
Prof Gupta said he would seek legal opinion as to whether it was possible to hold election for four vacancies of Panchayats in the Legislative Council without implementation of 73rd amendments of the Constitution of India and Block Development Council elections.
CPM veteran MY Tarigami, who is in the limelight after the talks that Third Front was going to field candidates for the MLC elections, confirmed that they were exploring possibilities of fielding credible candidates, who have broader vision of Panchayati Raj institutions.
“The candidates shouldn’t be fielding for the sake of ‘political accommodation’ but to promote Panchayati Raj institutions as elections for four vacancies of MLCs from Panchayat quota is being held for the first time since 1974”, Mr Tarigami said.
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