Srinagar- The Election Commission of India will meet political parties in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday to get feedback on conducting Assembly polls in the Union Territory.
The office of the chief electoral officer, Jammu and Kashmir, on Tuesday issued letters to various political parties, inviting them for a meeting with the Election Commission (EC).
The political parties have been given time slots for the meeting with the Election Commission.
The EC, led by Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar, is scheduled to visit Jammu and Kashmir from August 8-10 to review preparedness for Assembly polls, weeks before the Supreme Court’s September 30 deadline for holding elections in the Union Territory.
Kumar will be accompanied by Election Commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and S S Sandhu.
In March, Kumar — who was then the sole member of the three-member commission to visit the Union Territory — had assured political parties and the people of Jammu and Kashmir that the poll panel would soon hold elections in Jammu and Kashmir.
At that time, the two posts of election commissioners were vacant. They were filled days before the Lok Sabha polls were announced on March 16.
After a record turnout in the Lok Sabha elections in Jammu and Kashmir, Kumar had said, “This active participation is a huge positive for Assembly elections to be held soon so that the democratic process continues to thrive in the Union Territory.”
Besides meeting the political parties, the commission will also review the situation with the chief electoral officer and the central forces coordinator.
The commission will also review the preparations with election officers and police superintendents of all districts, as well as the chief secretary and the director general of police.
On August 10, the commission will visit Jammu for a review meeting with enforcement agencies. It will also hold a press conference in Jammu to brief the media on the review process.
Whenever Assembly elections are held in Jammu and Kashmir, they will be the first since provisions of Article 370 of the Constitution were abrogated and the erstwhile state divided into two Union Territories in 2019.
The electoral exercise in Jammu and Kashmir is usually spread over a month.
Following a delimitation exercise, the number of Assembly seats has gone up from 83 to 90, excluding those allocated to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Last December, the Supreme Court directed the poll panel to hold Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir by September 30.
In a fresh indication that the Assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir are imminent, the Election Commission last week asked the Union Territory administration to transfer officers posted in their home districts, an exercise it holds ahead of conducting elections.
The commission has been following a consistent policy that officers directly connected with the conduct of elections in a poll-bound state or Union Territory are not posted in their home districts or places where they have served for a considerably long period.
It is usual for the poll panel to issue instructions related to transfers of officers ahead of Lok Sabha and Assembly elections.
In June, it decided to accept applications seeking allotment of ‘common symbols’ from registered unrecognised parties in the Union Territory.
J&K CEO Seeks Helicopters for Assembly Polls
Ahead of the Election Commission of India’s visit, Jammu and Kashmir chief electoral officer (CEO) has set the ball rolling for hiring of helicopters for the electoral exercise. The helicopters are required from September to November, but, as per documents, the timing can change depending upon the election schedule to be announced by the poll body.
The CEO’s office has invited bids from reputed companies for hiring a helicopter and a helicopter ambulance for the Assembly polls in the Union Territory, which is without an elected government for over six years now.
As per documents, these helicopters are required from September 2024 to November 2024. “The period and number of days can be changed depending on the actual schedule of Legislative Assembly Elections in Jammu and Kashmir. The period and number of days shall be communicated accordingly,” reads the documents.
This is another indication that polls in Jammu & Kashmir would take place by September, the deadline set by the Supreme Court.
In December last year, the Supreme Court, while upholding the abrogation of Article 370 by the Centre, had directed the poll body to conduct elections in Jammu & Kashmir by September 30, 2024.
Jammu & Kashmir is without an elected government since June 19, 2018 when BJP withdrew support to Mehbooba Mufti-led government, citing “deteriorating” security in the erstwhile state. Since then, elections have not been held in J&K. The last assembly election in J&K was held in 2014.
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