Anantnag Lok Sabha seat had fallen vacant after its occupant Mehbooba Mufti resigned to fight Anantnag Assembly seat fallen vacant after the demise of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed. Election to Anantnag Parliamentary seat comprising four districts of South Kashmir was scheduled for 12th April, three days after the Parliamentary by-election for Srinagar constituency on April 9.
Large scale incidents of violence, stone throwing, arson and loot were witnessed in the course of April 9 election, in which seven persons lost their lives. Violence erupted partly as continuation of summer 2016 unrest and partly owing to whipping up of communal passions by some elements which, curiously the EC was unwilling to take note of. The immediate impact of the violence was that the election to Anantnag Parliamentary seat was postponed twice in view of continued disturbed conditions in South Kashmir and 25th of May was fixed as the day for the poll.
But with no relent in violence – related incidents particularly in four districts of South Kashmir, State Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police wrote to the CEC expressing that the ground situation in the four districts of South Kashmir was not conducive to holding peaceful elections. They said that police personnel were targeted and attacks were conducted by the militants and miscreants on their homes and families and there was no relent in lawlessness. On the basis of the reports from the Chief Secretary and the Police Chief, the Election Commission of India prepared a ten-page report for the Home Ministry indicating in no ambiguous terms that under such circumstances holding of elections was not advisable. Thus election to the Parliamentary seat has been cancelled.
This is a matter of great concern for the Government and also for the people of the State. There is a serious and relentless attempt on the part of separatists and seditionists to undermine democratic system in the State and force people not to take part in elections under the fear of the gun. Not only the secessionists and separatists, the seditionists and traitors but also some parties that till yesterday were basking in the sunshine of power have come out openly in defiance of the rule of law. Postponement and then cancellation of elections owing to looming threat from the secessionists casts aspersions on the efficiency of the Government to run the state. The militants have achieved their objective of disrupting elections and preventing people from casting their vote. The turnout in Srinagar Parliamentary elections was just 7.6 per cent which is all time low in the history of elections in the State. Therefore, the question is will this Government adopt negative attitude of just remaining content with the cancellation of election to a Parliamentary seat or will it take action under the provisions of the constitution to discourage the obstructionists from creating hurdles in the flow of democratic dispensation. In many countries in the world not casting vote in general elections for formation of Government is forbidden under law. In other countries punitive measures are taken against those who threaten peace loving civilians from coming out and casting their vote.
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