Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Nov 23: About 10.61 lakh electorates will elect 15 MLAs in first phase of polling for 15 Assembly segments in Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh regions on November 25 as campaigning for these constituencies ended at 6 pm today. Authorities have made elaborate security arrangements for Phase-I polling.
Six segments of Chenab Valley in Jammu region, all four seats of Ladakh region and five seats of Bandipora and Ganderbal districts in Kashmir Valley will go to polls on Tuesday.
Official sources told the Excelsior that about 10.61 lakh electorates including 5.58 lakh male and 5.03 lakh females apart from 9633 Service voters were eligible to cast their franchise to elect 15 MLAs from out of 123 candidates in fray for 15 Assembly constituencies. The Election Commission has set up 1781 polling stations in these segments.
Nobra constituency in Ladakh has minimum number of 13054 votes while Bhaderwah has maximum number of 1.04 lakh electorates.
Fate of seven Ministers and several other bigwigs was at stake in first phase of polling. They included Works Minister Abdul Mujeed Wani (Doda), Urban Development Minister Rigzin Jora (Leh), Higher Education Minister Mohammad Akbar Lone (Sonawari), Forests Minister Mian Altaf (Kangan), Minister of State for Home Sajjad Kitchloo (Kishtwar), Minister of State for Power Viqar Rasool Wani (Banihal) and Minister of State for Animal and Sheep Husbandry Nazir Ahmad Gurezi (Gurez).
Sitting MLAs Nizam-ud-Din Bhat (Bandipora), Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Mohammad Sharief Niaz (Bhaderwah) and Ghulam Mohammad Saroori (Inderwal) were also in the fray in Phase-I of elections.
Of 15 seats going to polls, NC holds eight, Congress six and PDP one in the outgoing Assembly. Though the BJP has no MLA from 15 seats going to elections in Phase-I, it had polled impressive number of votes in all six segments of Chenab Valley and three out of four seats in Ladakh region in this year’s Lok Sabha elections and the party was further hoping to improve its performance in the Assembly polls.
Chief Minister and National Conference working president Omar Abdullah’s Assembly constituency, Ganderbal also goes to polls in Phase-I but he is not contesting the seat this time having shifted to Sonawar and Beerwah.
Six seats of Chenab Valley in Jammu region, which would go to polls in first phases included Kishtwar, which has 78,849 electorates and 143 polling stations, Inderwal with 83,568 votes and 131 polling stations, Doda having 83,292 voters and 139 polling stations, Bhaderwah with 1,04,354 votes and 152 polling stations, Ramban with 85902 electorates and 121 polling stations and Banihal with 78072 electorates and 97 polling stations.
In Ladakh region, Nobra segment has 13054 electorates only and 63 polling stations while Leh has 67736 votes and 211 polling stations. Kargil segment has 59440 votes and 176 polling stations while Zanskar has 20696 voters and 83 polling stations.
Kashmir Valley’s five Assembly segments going to polls in Phase-I are Gurez with 17554 votes and just 27 polling stations, Bandipora with 98375 electorates and 124 polling stations, Sonawari with 99421 voters and 112 polling stations, Kangan with 69408 votes and 97 polling stations and Ganderbal has 90529 electorates and 111 polling stations.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi campaigned for BJP in first phase at Kishtwar yesterday while AICC (I) president Sonia Gandhi had addressed rallies in Chanderkoot (Ramban) and Bandipora. BJP president Amit Shah campaigned in Ramban and Banihal. Union Home Minister and BJP leader Rajnath Singh also addressed rallies at Paddar (Kishtwar), Bhaderwah and Leh while Union Ministers—Kiren Rijiju and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi campaigned extensively in Leh and Kargil.
Chief Minister and NC working president Omar Abdullah, PDP patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and president Mehbooba Mufti, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha and former Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad campaigned extensively for their party candidates in first phase among others. Minister of State in PMO and Lok Sabha member from Udhampur-Doda Dr Jitendra Singh has also extensively campaigned for the BJP candidates in entire Chenab Valley.
The BJP is eyeing majority of seats in Chenab Valley. Presently, NC holds one and Congress 5 out of 6 seats of Chenab Valley. Fresh from Lok Sabha victory on Ladakh seat, the BJP is eyeing Assembly seats in Ladakh.
Enthusiasm witnessed among the voters during the election meetings and road shows organised by different political parties, is expected to increase the voter turnout, as there was no impact of any boycott call by separatists, barring in few pockets of Bandipora in Kashmir Valley, sources said.
The least number of two candidates are seeking election from Leh constituency, while the highest 13 nominees are in the fray from three constituencies of Bhaderwah, Ganderbal and Bandipora.
There was absolutely no impact of the separatist boycott call as despite chilly weather conditions, particularly in Gurez, Bandipora, Sonawari, Ganderbal and Kangan in Kashmir valley and Leh, Nobra, Kargil and Zanskar, people in large number participated in election rallies. The rallies were more or less peaceful.
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