By Jasleen Kour
The Election Commission of India (ECI), led by Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar, along with Election Commissioners (ECs) Gyanesh Kumar and Dr. SS Sandhu, has embarked on a crucial two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir to oversee preparations for the upcoming Assembly Elections in the Union Territory.
This visit highlights the ECI’s steadfast commitment to ensuring a smooth and transparent electoral process in the region.
Today, the ECI team held extensive discussions with a wide range of stakeholders, including representatives from both national and state-recognized political parties. These discussions aimed to gather valuable insights and address their concerns, thereby encouraging active participation in the electoral process.
Later in the day, the ECI reviewed the election preparedness with District Election Officers and Superintendents of Police (SPs), focusing on the administrative and security arrangements essential for conducting the elections.
Additionally, an evening session was conducted with the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Special Police Nodal Officer (SPNO), and Central Police Forces (CPMF) Nodal Officer to assess the coordination efforts among various agencies involved in election management.
On August 9, the visit will conclude with a final meeting with the Chief Secretary and Director General of Police. Following this, the ECI team will travel to Jammu to review the situation with enforcement agencies, culminating in a press conference.
Opposition Parties Demand Assembly Polls Before September 30
During their meeting with the ECI team, political parties on Thursday demanded immediate assembly polls in the Union Territory. Representatives from the National Conference (NC), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC), Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP), National Panthers Party (Bhim), National Panthers Party (India), and CPI (M) met with the high-level team.
All political parties insisted that elections should be conducted as per the deadline set by the Supreme Court (SC) of India.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, a delegation from the BJP, led by former MLA RS Pathania, emphasized their demand for elections to be held within the timeline given by the Supreme Court.
“The BJP supports early assembly polls and we have conveyed to the team that the elections should be held before the deadline set by the Supreme Court,” Pathania stated.
Former Congress MLA Ghulam Nabi Monga, NC’s provincial president for Kashmir, Nasir Aslam Wani, president of National Panthers Party (Bhim), Vileshan Singh, former minister and leader of National Panthers Party (India) Harsh Dev Singh, PDP leader Asiya Naqash, and CPI (M) leader Muhammad Abbas Rather led their respective party delegations.
