Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar on Monday said that the poll panel will begin the election process in the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir very soon.
“We will very soon start poll process in Jammu and Kashmir, we are very enthused by voter turnout,” Kumar said at the briefing ahead of the counting of votes for the Lok Sabha elections.
“Jammu and Kashmir recorded highest turnout in four decades at 58.58 per cent overall, and 51.05 per cent in valley,” the poll panel chief added.
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Jammu and Kashmir sends five MPs to the lower house of Parliament from Jammu, Udhampur, Srinagar, Baramulla and Anantnag-Rajouri.
J&K witnessed the first election after the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019, which ended the special status of the erstwhile state and made it into a Union territory. The counting of votes for the Lok Sabha elections will be held on Tuesday, June 4.
While announcing the schedule for the Lok Sabha election in March, the CEC was asked about the plans for Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections. He had said,”“EC stands committed to holding Assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir soon after LS elections.”
When questioned why the simultaneous Lok Sabha and assembly elections are not being held in J&K, Kumar had said,”All parties in Jammu and Kashmir said the Assembly election should be held with the parliamentary polls, but the entire administrative machinery said it cannot be done simultaneously. Every Assembly segment would have 10-12 candidates, which would mean more than 1,000 candidates. Every candidate has to be provided forces. It was not possible at this time.”
Last December, the Supreme Court had held the abrogation of Article 370 as constitutionally valid, while directing the poll panel to hold elections in the Union territory by September 30, 2024.