Rajiv Kumar, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of India, said on Friday that the exact dates for the assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir would be revealed after a final security assessment is conducted in Delhi.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) arrived in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday for a two-day visit to assess the possibility of holding assembly elections in September, as ordered by the Supreme Court.
The CEC said that the Election Commission is committed to holding the Assembly polls in J&K as soon as possible. He added minor attempts to disrupt the elections will not derail the process.
"We don’t want to see a ‘Chicken and Egg’ situation in J&K after some terror attacks in the Jammu region," he said at a press conference in Jammu. "Our forces are capable of handling the situation, and we won’t allow these small attempts to disrupt the election process."
Rajiv Kumar said the exact poll dates will be announced after the final security assessment in Delhi. He added that all political parties in J&K are in favour of holding early elections. "The feedback we received from security heads, administrative officers, and district police chiefs is that while there are a few security challenges, they are ready to ensure peaceful elections in J&K."
Accompanied by two election commissioners, he recalled his previous visit to the region concerning the Lok Sabha polls. He noted that in May 2022, after the delimitation of J&K was completed, the J&K Reorganisation Act was passed in Parliament in December.
He said that the process of preparing for elections in J&K began shortly after. He pointed out that the Lok Sabha polls are over and the Amarnath Yatra is still ongoing. "The people of J&K made history by participating in record numbers in the polls," he said. He added political parties he met in Srinagar and Jammu praised the ECI for conducting peaceful Lok Sabha elections.
Kumar said parties also raised some demands, such as ensuring polling booths are within a two-kilometre radius and providing CCTV coverage at polling stations. "We have informed them that both these demands have been met, and the necessary instructions have been issued," he said.
Regarding the Supreme Court's deadline of September for holding polls in J&K, the CEC stated that no internal or external force can delay the elections in J&K. "The people of J&K will give a fitting response to any disruptive forces," he said.
Addressing the political parties' demand for a level playing field and security cover for politicians, he said they have taken note of that and will ensure there is a level playing field and a security review for politicians so that they can carry out their activities normally. "Another demand was to avoid last-minute clustering of polling stations," he said. "It was assured that this would be managed, with only a few exceptions for geographical reasons."
(With inputs from Tariq Bhat)
