Jammu & Kashmir Elections: Will Terror Incidents Cause Delay In J-K Polls? Here’s What CEC Rajiv Kumar Said

J&K Assembly Polls: CEC Rajiv Kumar also said that all political parties in Jammu and Kashmir are "batting strongly" for holding the assembly elections "as soon as possible".

CEC Rajiv Kumar during his visit to Jammu and Kashmir to review poll preparedness.

Source : PTI

J&K Assembly Polls: Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar, who is on a three-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir, heading a delegation of the Election Commission of India, stated on Friday that the poll body is committed to conducting polls in the Union Territory "at the earliest". 

The EC delegation led by Kumar is in Jammu and Kashmir to review the preparedness of the administration and the security agencies for conducting the polls.

Addressing a press conference here, Kumar stated that "All political parties in Jammu and Kashmir are batting strongly for holding assembly elections as soon as possible. We are committed to conducting polls in Jammu and Kashmir at the earliest."

He also stressed that the EC would "not allow any internal or external forces derail the electoral process."

On Thursday, the delegation met with the leaders of various regional and national parties in the Union Territory, including National Conference (NC), Congress, People's Democratic Party (PDP), and Bharatiya Janata Party, among others, all of which were of the same opinion that the polls must be conducted as soon as possible.

On Friday, the second day of their visit, the EC delegation that also includes Election Commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and S S Sandhu, met and held discussions with Jammu and Kashmir chief secretary Atal Dullo and the Union Terrtory's police chief R R Swain, news agency PTI reported.

After meeting the delegation the leaders also seemed hopeful that the poll body would conduct elections in the Union Territory soon, saying that they were assured by the EC delegation.

'Parties Praised Successful Conduct Of LS Polls In J&K': Kumar

During the press conference, Kumar also said that the all of the political parties that he met with, praised the poll body for successfully conducting the parliamentary elections in Jammu and Kashmir, as it boosted their confidence.

"We met the state's national and recognised parties... All of them praised the public and Election Commission for the successful Lok Sabha polls in Jammu and Kashmir. They all said it was a historic achievement, it had good participation, no incident (of violence) took place which has boosted people's confidence," he said.

He also said that the parties demanded to elect public representatives who are familiar with the valley and the locals.

"All the parties demanded that the Assembly polls be held at the earliest. All the parties demanded that there be public elected representatives in J&K, who have a better connect with locals... More or less all the political parties, except one or two, also wanted that a level-playing field be established," Kumar added.

VIDEO | "We met the state's national and recognised parties... All of them praised the public and Election Commission for the successful Lok Sabha polls in Jammu and Kashmir. They all said it was a historic achievement, it had good participation, no incident (of violence) took… pic.twitter.com/GwpRkJ02fK

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) August 9, 2024

The EC chief also stated that the parties demanded that the security in each region should be maintained equally, enabling them to engage in political actvities "without any fear".

"They had another demand... there was a review of security of political functionaries in the state in which security of some of them was downgraded, some did not get it and security of some was upgraded... their perception was that everyone should get equal security so that they can get involved in political activities without any fear, irrespective of the party they are from," Kumar said.

"With full commitment and resolve nothing will be allowed to disrupt the elections. It would become a chicken and egg situation...These things will have no impact on the elections. Our forces and our administration are capable enough to deal with any situation that comes in the way," the CEC said.

#WATCH | Jammu, J&K: Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar says, "With full commitment and resolve nothing will be allowed to disrupt the elections. It would become a chicken and egg situation...These things will have no impact on the elections. Our forces and our… pic.twitter.com/WhPnf4nNus

— ANI (@ANI) August 9, 2024

Assembly polls have not been held in the valley since 2014. They were due to be held in early 2019 after the legislative body of the erstwhile state was dissolved in 2018.

However, following the bifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir into Union territories in August 2019, polls could not be held due to several reasons, including a delimitation exercise that was completed in 2022.

The Supreme Court, in December last year, directed the Centre to conclude the election process by September 30, 2024.