Rajiv Kumar had recently visited the Union Territory to hold consultations with political parties and the administration. “But we are committed that as soon as these (Lok Sabha) elections are over and we have (adequate security) forces, we will hold elections there (in Jammu and Kashmir) as soon as possible,” he said.
He clarified that it is not practical to hold both the elections simultaneously due to the challenge of providing security to every candidate in the Union Territory during the nationwide elections.
The CEC said, “The entire administrative machinery said in one voice that these elections cannot be conducted simultaneously.” There will be 10-12 candidates in each assembly constituency, which means more than 1,000 candidates. Every candidate will have to provide security. This is not possible at this time.
He said that during consultations with political parties in Jammu and Kashmir, the need for simultaneous elections was emphasized and the fact that assembly elections have not been held in the region since 2014 was highlighted.
He said that after the delimitation process, the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act was amended in December 2023 and the clock started ticking for the Election Commission since then.
CEC said, “The Reorganization Act was passed in 2019. There was a provision of 107 seats, out of which 24 seats were in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK). Of the remaining 83, seven were reserved for SC (Scheduled Caste) while there was no reservation for ST (Scheduled Tribe).
He said, “Then the Delimitation Commission came… the number of seats changed. This increased to 114 and 24 remained in PoK… Nine seats were reserved for STs, which was a new thing, and two were reserved for migrants. A seat was kept for the people displaced from PoK.
He argued that there was no coordination between the Reorganization Act and the Delimitation Act and coordination was established by amending the Reorganization Act in December 2023. Kumar said, “So our meter for holding elections started running from December 2023.”
Former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir Omar Abdullah said that the Election Commission is unable to hold simultaneous elections in Jammu and Kashmir, while accepting that assembly elections are to be held in the Union Territory.
(This news has not been edited by NDTV team. It is published directly from the syndicate feed.)
