Last Updated on 16/08/2024 by Arun jain
The Election Commission is going to hold a press conference today at 3 pm. The dates for the assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir can also be announced in this conference. The Supreme Court had ordered to conduct assembly elections here by 30 September 2024.
This will be the first assembly election after the removal of Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir. Article 370 was removed from the valley on 5 August 2019.
The assembly elections to be held after 10 years will be special in many ways. A lot of things have changed since the last assembly elections were held here in 2014. The number of seats has also increased a bit. Earlier the elected government was everything, but now most of the powers will be with the Lieutenant Governor.
In such a situation, let us know what will be different from the last time in this election which is going to be held after 10 years? And how much can this political equation change?
How much has Jammu and Kashmir changed?
Jammu and Kashmir had changed a lot on 5 August 2019 itself. After this, Jammu and Kashmir was divided into two parts. First- Jammu and Kashmir and second- Ladakh. Both are now union territories. Jammu and Kashmir also has an assembly, whereas Ladakh does not have such an assembly.
Although Jammu and Kashmir has an assembly, the government here will no longer be the same as before. Earlier, the elected government was everything in Jammu and Kashmir, but now the Lieutenant Governor will be at the top.
The Lieutenant Governor will have authority over police, land and public order. Whereas, the elected government will be able to decide on all other matters. However, the approval of the Lieutenant Governor will be necessary.
How much has the number of seats changed?
– Before: There were a total of 111 seats in Jammu and Kashmir. There were 37 seats in Jammu, 46 in Kashmir and 4 in Ladakh. There were 24 seats in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (POK).
– Now: Now there will be 43 seats in Jammu and 47 in Kashmir. Only 24 seats are reserved for PoK. Elections cannot be held here. Whereas Ladakh does not even have an assembly. In this way, there are a total of 114 seats, out of which elections will be held on 90 seats.
How many seats increased where?
In Jammu region, one seat each has been increased in Samba, Kathua, Rajouri, Kishtwar, Doda and Udhampur. Whereas, in Kashmir region, one seat has been increased in Kupwara district.
Ramgarh seat in Samba, Jammu, Jasrota in Kathua, Thannamandi in Rajouri, Padder-Nagseni in Kishtwar, Doda West in Doda and Ramnagar seat in Udhampur have been newly added.
At the same time, in Kashmir region, one seat has been added in Kupwara district. Trehgam will be the new seat in Kupwara. Now Kupwara will have 6 seats instead of 5.
What about Kashmiri Pandits?
Two seats have been reserved for Kashmiri Pandits. However, they have been called Kashmiri migrants. Now the Lieutenant Governor will be able to nominate three members for the Assembly, out of which two will be Kashmiri migrants and one displaced person from PoK. One of the two Kashmiri migrants who will be nominated will be a woman.
A Kashmiri migrant will be considered to be one who has migrated from the valley or any part of Jammu and Kashmir after 1 November 1989 and whose name is registered with the Relief Commission. At the same time, any person who has come from PoK after 1947-48, 1965 or 1971 will be considered a displaced person.
According to this, there will be a total of 93 seats in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly. But elections will be held for only 90 seats. This is the same formula as in Puducherry. There are a total of 33 assembly seats in Puducherry, out of which 30 are elected by the public, while the remaining 3 seats are nominated by the central government.
Apart from this, 16 seats have been reserved for Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST). Out of these, 7 seats have been reserved for SC and 9 seats for ST.
How much has politics changed?
Now the politics of Jammu and Kashmir has also changed a lot. In the old Jammu and Kashmir, there were 37 seats in Jammu and 46 seats in Kashmir. Therefore, it was easier to form a government after performing well in Kashmir.
But now there will be 43 seats in Jammu and 47 in Kashmir. This has made it necessary to win more seats not only in Kashmir but also in Jammu. Jammu is a Hindu majority area while Kashmir is a Muslim majority area. BJP is expected to benefit from the increase of 6 seats in Jammu.
In the 2014 assembly elections, BJP had won 25 seats (out of 37) in Jammu. In the recently held Lok Sabha elections, BJP has managed to win two seats in Jammu – Jammu and Udhampur. However, BJP had won both these seats in the last elections as well.
However, it is believed that elections in Kashmir can be very interesting. That is because the people here are angry with the removal of 370. BJP’s decision of not contesting the Lok Sabha elections in Kashmir was linked to this anger. BJP campaigned all over the country on the decision of removal of 370 from Kashmir and called it one of its biggest achievements, but it remained out of the electoral fray from the same Kashmir.
There are talks that some small parties have emerged in Kashmir. These include ‘People’s Conference’ and Altaf Bukhari’s ‘Jammu-Kashmir Apni Party’. It is claimed that BJP supports these parties. It is also necessary for BJP to support these parties to divide the votes and form the government in Kashmir.
What were the results in 2014?
The last assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir were held in 2014. Out of the 87 seats here, PDP won 28, BJP 25, National Conference 15 and Congress 12. BJP and PDP formed the government together and Mufti Mohammad Sayeed became the Chief Minister.
Mufti Mohammad Sayeed died in January 2016. Governor’s rule was imposed for about four months. Later his daughter Mehbooba Mufti became the Chief Minister. But this alliance did not last long. On 19 June 2018, BJP broke the alliance with PDP. Governor’s rule was imposed in the state. Currently President’s rule is imposed there.
While upholding the decision to remove Article 370 last year, the Supreme Court has ordered the central government to conduct assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir by September 30, 2024.
Source (PTI) (NDTV) (HINDUSTANTIMES)