I n a major development but necessarily as a big leap towards strengthening democracy and democratic process, the conglomerate of seven political parties that formed, what they call as “Gupkar Alliance”, have inter-alia, decided to take part in the upcoming District Development Council (DDC) elections in the UT of Jammu and Kashmir. These elections were going to be held in eight phases starting from November 28 to December 19 this year as per the notification issued by the JK Election Commission. Needless to add, the seven parties of the said ”Alliance” are National Conference, People’s Democratic Party, Jammu and Kashmir People’s Conference, Awami National Conference and CPI (M). The Congress has also decided and declared that it was going to take part in the elections to District Development Councils. On the other hand, not entirely beyond political analysts’ expectations, the other six parties of the ”Alliance ” too unanimously decided to fight the DDCs election united (ly) which, at the outset, has vindicated the stand of the Central and UT Governments that these elections were a part of increasingly widening the scope of a constitutional and democratic process in the UT to give a fillip to grass root political process where the people were the masters to decide how best and in which manner to develop their districts, tehsils, Blocks, villages and other areas. This decision of the said ”Alliance” prima-facia, is affirmation of the political miscalculation
committed by them in the year 2018 by declaring boycott of the elections to the ULBs and Panchayats when there was even no whimper of abrogation of the Article 370 let alone bifurcation of the state into two Union Territories. Now that under the set up of the DDCs being of the UT of Jammu and Kashmir sans any ”Special Status” etc and the candidates likely to enter the fray had to fill in the nomination and other forms under the changed set up, indirectly also meant their support for strengthening of grass root democracy in the Union Territory. It is, however, an admitted fact that the upcoming elections to the DDCs would be more interesting, more participative and more wide in scope and manner as compared to the successful elections to the ULBs and the Panchayats held in 2018 as now, almost all the mainstream political parties in Jammu and Kashmir were scheduled to take part in it. While such a positive move needs to be welcome and wholly appreciated, nevertheless, the fact that any sort of differences, issues and problems had the scope of resolution only through democratic and constitutional means. The entire scenario, that of the vibrant and successful democratic process of India had even over shadowed that of the oldest democracy of the world -the United States of America looking to the recent developments there related to the elections to send a new incumbent to the White House. In comparison, all these seven decades, Indian democracy has emerged more triumphant and successful. Under these facts of circumstances, we can only appreciate the sagacity of the said Alliance to participate in the approaching elections in respect of which the Alliance has felt an element of the Government all of a sudden “springing a surprise” to finish the task (of the entire election process) within a month. However, having equally started making preparations fast, about which not only the decision to take part in the elections but even the nature of modalities for these elections through which the Alliance had proposed to go, have also been chalked out by them to be at the discretion of the Head of the Alliance Dr. Farooq Abdullah in matters of deciding and releasing the names of the candidates for the said elections. Since voters of Jammu and Kashmir are politically mature enough to evaluate the importance of such elections, it is hoped that they, in large numbers, would come out and take part in the election process by voting for their favourite candidates. While it hardlyneeds any emphasis, security and other arrangements must be adequate both for the candidates as well as for the voters mainly in identified vulnerably sensitive areas to aim at complete and successful elections.
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