Suhail Bhat
SRINAGAR, Oct 1: In the third and final phase of Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir, border residents of the Kashmir voted for fair representation in the Assembly, hoping to address their long-standing development deficit and create employment opportunities for youth in these remote areas.
Residents of border areas such as Kupwara, Karnah, and Gurez queued up outside polling stations today to exercise their franchise, driven by concerns like unemployment, lack of basic facilities, and insufficient development funding for their areas.
To facilitate voter participation, the Election Commission set up 5,060 polling stations, ensuring 100-percent across all constituencies. Of these, 974 were urban polling stations, while 4,086 were in rural areas. Additionally, 29 polling stations were located near the Line of Control and the International Border for border residents, with 33 unique polling stations also established.
Mohammad Aziz Beigh, a resident of Uri, a border town, emphasized the significance of this vote, saying, “Today’s vote is crucial because we have been without representatives for the last ten years, and our areas often get ignored. There were no elections during this period. We feel unheard, and our issues remain unresolved. Our representatives were jailed, and Article 370 was scrapped in 2019.”
He also highlighted that unemployment has risen dramatically in the past decade, especially among border youth. “There are no employment avenues, including factories, in our areas. The region receives less funding, leading to underdevelopment,” he added.
Residents expressed their frustration that, despite improvements in security, development has not reached the border areas. Ishfaq Ahmad, a young resident from a border area, said, “The Government shows development in cities, but there is no one in our areas. Our issues remain unresolved. We face unemployment, lack of electricity, and inadequate food grains. I am hopeful this time our demands will be addressed.”
Bashir Ahmad Lone, another resident, complained about rising household expenses. “We face immense problems. Electricity bills have skyrocketed, food grain supplies have reduced, and inflation is at an all-time high,” he said.
In Gurez constituency, which is reserved for Scheduled Tibe and located along the Line of Control in north Kashmir’s Bandipora district, voters said they cast their ballots for change and development. “We remain cut off from the valley for six months, and no representative has secured year-round connectivity for this area. There is a complete development mess here. Today, we have come out to change our fortunes,” said another voter.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has traditionally struggled to gain a foothold in the Kashmir Valley, is aiming to secure its first-ever victory in the region by winning this strategic seat.
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