The by-election for Srinagar and Anantnag parliamentary constituencies of Kashmir Valley will be held next month and National Conference (NC) President, Dr. Farooq Abdullah, is not contesting the polls, if sources within the party are to be believed.
Sources said senior leaders of the party argue that if Abdullah loses the election from Srinagar, it will have a demoralizing effect on party cadres, which will have a bearing on the coming Assembly elections, to be held in 2020.
The NC is also holding meeting of its core group this week to decide on the nomination of its candidates. Speculation is rife about senior party leader Abdul Rahim Rather or party chief-spokesman 31-year-old Junaid Azim Mattu as likely candidates in case the party core group advises Dr. Farooq Abdullah not to contest. Sources said they will, however, argue that the term for 16th Lok Sabha is ending in two years and it will not feasible to field Abdullah as candidate.
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According to sources, another senior leader of the party, Ali Mohammad Sagar, is also interested that his son Salman Sagar be given a nomination, if Dr. Abdullah heeds advice of the party leaders and decides not to contest.
Srinagar, which had remained a stronghold of the NC for past three decades, jolted Abdullah in the 2014 general election when he lost to Tariq Hamid Karra of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Till 2014, NC had won all elections from Srinagar except 1971, when the party didn’t contest the polls.
In 2014, of the 12.06 lakh voters only 26% turned up to vote. In Srinagar district, the voter turnout had remained 11.46%, whereas Ganderbal district recorded the highest turnout at 45.21%.
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The bye-elections are taking place at a time when there is no thaw in pro-freedom protests, which erupted in the Valley after killing of a militant commander, 22-year-old Burhan Muzaffer Wani, last year.
Of three parliamentary constituencies of Kashmir region, two fell vacant after Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti resigned from the Anantnag constituency in June last year. Later, on September 15, PDP’s senior leader, Tariq Hamid Karra, resigned from the Srinagar parliamentary seat over killing of civilian protesters in bullet and pellet firing of the government forces. Karra accused government forces of “butchering Kashmiris and spilling their blood.”
Karra, who has joined Congress party, is the likely candidate of the Congress from Srinagar constituency.
Ruling Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) senior leader Naeem Akhtar said that his party has not decided on candidates yet. “The party political affairs committee will meet and take a call on it,” Akhtar told Outlook.
The notification for Srinagar and Anantnag parliamentary constituencies would be issued on March 14 and March 17, 2017 respectively while the last date for filing nominations has been fixed as March 21 and March 24.
“The scrutiny of nominations would be done on March 22 and March 27, 2017 respectively while as the candidates can withdraw their nominations till March 24 and March 29, 2017 respectively,” the CEO, Shantmanu, said.
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He said around 27 lakh voters will cast their vote in these bye-elections and special polling stations have been set-up at Jammu, Udhampur and Delhi for more than 73,000 migrant voters.
The CEO said that basic facilities would be provided in all the polling stations in both the parliamentary constituencies and ensured that election process would be done with utmost care in a free and transparent manner.
