Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Dec 7: The Election Commission of India has directed for putting in place all possible security measures for polling in 16 Assembly constituencies in Phase-III of Assembly elections on December 9 in view of multiple terror strikes in the State and inputs that the militants could try to disturb the polling after successful conduct of first two phases of polls with huge turnout of 71.28 and 72.1 per cent respectively.
Campaigning for all 16 Assembly segments-seven in Baramulla, five in Budgam and four in Pulwama district going to polls in this phase ended at 6 pm today.
Official sources told the Excelsior that the full Election Commission headed by Chief Election Commissioner VS Sampath, which was scheduled to hold high level review of security situation and election preparedness for third and fourth phases in Srinagar yesterday but had deferred the visit due to terror attacks, has directed the Election Department of J&K, civil and police administration to ensure that the electorates are provided adequate security so that the terror attacks didn’t impact the voter turnout in 16 Assembly segments.
“A direction from the Election Commission has gone to all the concerned agencies that best possible security should be put in force for all 16 Assembly constituencies-not only inside and outside the polling stations but in all vulnerable areas and soft targets to thwart any strike by the militants, which could lower the turnout in the third phase of polling,” sources said.
Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Jammu and Kashmir, Umang Narula has briefed the CEC VS Sampath, Election Commissioners-BS Brahma and Dr Naseem Zaidi and Deputy Election Commissioner, Incharge Jammu and Kashmir Vinod Zutshi on election preparedness for third phase of polling, which was confined to the Kashmir valley only, and security arrangements being made with adequate deployment of para-military forces, Armed Police, Indian Reserve Police and Jammu and Kashmir Police.
Authorities have deployed record number of 500 additional companies of para-military forces in three districts of Baramulla, Budgam and Pulwama for peaceful voting on December 9. In first two phases when 15 and 18 Assembly seats respectively had gone for voting, the administration had deployed 400 para-military companies.
“However, in view of multiple terror attacks on December 5 in which 21 persons were killed in the Kashmir valley, authorities had deployed all 500 additional companies at their disposal in three districts of polling,” sources said, adding that the Election Commission was monitoring situation in Jammu and Kashmir and was in close touch with their representatives in the State apart from top brass of civil and police administration.
The constituencies going to polls on December 9 for which campaigning ended this evening included Uri, Rafiabad, Sopore, Sangrama, Baramulla, Gulmarg and Pattan in Baramulla district, Chadoora, Budgam, Beerwah, Khansahib and Charar-i-Sharief in Budgam district, Tral, Pampore, Pulwama and Rajpora in Pulwama district.
About 13.69 lakh electorates would decide the fate of 143 candidates including many bigwigs like Chief Minister Omar Abdullah in December 9 polling.
Among the bigwigs in fray for third phase of polling included Chief Minister Omar Abdullah (Beerwah), his Ministerial colleagues Abdul Rahim Rather (Charar-e-Sharief), Taj Mohi-ud-Din (Congress-Uri), Ghulam Hassan Mir (DPN-Gulmarg), two Rajya Sabha members of NC-Mohammad Shaffi Uri (Uri) and Ghulam Nabi Ratanpuri (Pulwama), Omar’s uncle Dr Sheikh Mustafa (Gulmarg), PCC (I) chief Prof Saif-ud-Din Soz’ son-Salman Soz (Baramulla) and former Ministers including Javed Mustafa Mir (PDP-Chadoora), Aga Syed Ruhulla Mehdi (NC-Budgam) and Hakeem Mohammad Yaseen (PDF-Khansahib), PDP sitting MLAs Syed Basharat Bukhari (Sangrama) and Dr Shaffi Ahmad Wani (Beerwah) among others.
Former Legislative Council Chairman and PDP leader Ghulam Nabi Lone Hanjoora is also in the electoral battle from Charar-i-Sharief. Retired IGP Raja Aijaz Ali is in the fray from Uri constituency as the PDP candidate facing Mohammad Shaffi Uri and Taj Mohi-ud-Din among others.
Apart from Beerwah, Omar is also contesting the election from Sonawar Assembly constituency in Srinagar district, which will have polling in Phase-IV of the elections on December 14.
Sopore Assembly segment in Baramulla district, the home town of hardliner separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani has highest number of 1.03 lakh votes in Phase-III while Sangrama constituency in the same district has lowest number of 66,159 electorates. Sopore has 134 polling stations and Sangrama 92.
Baramulla district has 5.91 lakh electorates, Budgam 4.45 lakh and Pulwama 3.32 lakh. The three districts have 825, 547 and 409 polling stations respectively.
Sopore and Pattan Assembly constituencies in Baramulla district have highest number of 15 candidates each in the fray while lowest number of five candidates were contesting in Uri segment of the same district. Rafiabad and Sangrama seats have 12 candidates each, Baramulla (11), Pulwama (10), Pattan, Gulmarg and Rajpora eight each, Chadoora, Budgam and Tral-7 each and Beerwah, Khansahib and Pampore–6 each.
The PDP has fielded all but one candidate. Bashir Ahmad Shah, who was elected on PDP mandate in 2008, is now contesting as an independent after the party gave mandate to Haseeb Ahmad Drabu, a former chairman of Jammu and Kashmir Bank.
During 2008 election, highest 81.73 per cent votes were polled in Uri border constituency, which recently witnessed fidayeen attack on an Army camp in which 8 soldiers, including an officer, three police personnel and six militants were killed on December 5 while lowest turnout of 19.95 per cent was recorded in Sopore.
The highest number of 825 polling stations were set up in Baramulla for 5,91,875 voters, followed by 547 polling booths for 4,45,208 voters in Badgam and 409 polling stations for 3,32,019 votes in Pulwama district.
All poll staff and other poll material, including Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) are being dispatched to their respective polling stations by tomorrow evening to be ready on December 9 when polling will start at 8 am and continued till 4 pm.
The NC, PDP and Congress are contesting all seats while BJP. National Panthers Party (NPP), Peoples Conference (PC) and some other parties have put up less candidates.
The BJP, aiming 44+ to form the Government in the State, has not fielded any candidate from hardliner Hurriyat Conference (HC) chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani’s home constituency Sopore, where it was supporting the People’s Conference candidate.
The BJP has fielded a Kashmiri Pandit Desh Kumar Nehru from Rafiabad in Baramulla and a Sikh Avtar Singh from Tral in Pulwama besides six Muslim candidates.
Omar, who chose to contest from Beerwah assembly segment in Budgam district instead of his family bastion of Ganderbal, will be hoping that some of the recent steps taken by his Government for the area will help him sail through from a constituency which was won by PDP candidates in the last two elections.
Omar’s bid for a second term in the Assembly will face a challenge from incumbent MLA and PDP leader Dr Mohammad Shafi Wani and Congress contender Nazir Ahmad Khan, whose father Sarfaraz Khan had won from Beerwah in 2002 elections as a PDP candidate.
More than Omar, the third phase of election is important for the PDP as it represents nine of the 16 constituencies while National Conference holds only four seats.
While the PDP has given mandate to six sitting MLAs including Dr Wani, it has fielded fresh faces in the other three constituencies.
Imran Ansari was shifted from Zadibal constituency in Srinagar to Pattan constituency in Baramulla district following the death of his father and sitting MLA Moulvi Iftikhar Hussain Ansari.
In Rajpora constituency of Pulwama, the PDP has fielded former banker Dr Haseeb Drabu, denying mandate to sitting MLA Syed Bashir, who is contesting as an independent candidate.
The party has fielded Javed Ahmad Beigh from Baramulla seat following election of sitting MLA Muzaffar Hussain Beigh, former Deputy Chief Minister, to the Lok Sabha earlier this year from Baramulla-Kupwara Lok Sabha seat.
The another constituency that will be keenly watched is Chrar-e-Sharief where Finance Minister and NC leader Abdul Rahim Rather is seeking seventh consecutive term.
Rather, who already holds the State record for highest number of consecutive wins from one constituency, however, is facing anti-incumbency as NC trailed in his constituency in Lok Sabha polls for the first time in nearly 40 years.
Agriculture Minister Ghulam Hassan Mir, who was at the centre of controversy sparked by former Army Chief V K Singh’s claim that politicians in Jammu and Kashmir were on pay rolls on Army, will be seeking fourth term from Gulmarg assembly segment.
Senior Congress leader and Minister for Health Taj Mohi-ud-Din will be seeking third consecutive term from Uri segment, where NC’s Rajya Sabha member Mohammad Shaffi Uri and retired IGP Raja Aijaz Ali (PDP) were challenging him among others.
Khansahib constituency in Budgam district will see Hakim Mohammad Yasin of Peoples Democratic Front seeking third consecutive term by wading off challenge from former separatist and now PDP candidate Saiduddin Bhat among others.
The other sitting MLAs who are seeking re-election include NC leaders Mohammad Ashraf Ganaie (Sopore), Aga Ruhullah (Budgam), Javed Ahmad Dar (Rafiabad), PDP leaders Basharat Bukhari (Sangrama), Javed Mustafa Mir (Chadoora), Mushtaq Ahmad Shah (Tral), Zahoor Ahmad Mir (Pampore) and Mohammad Khalil Bandh (Pulwama).
Trending Now
E-Paper
Follow our WhatsApp channel