Budgam: The Government Girls Model Higher Secondary Institute in Budgam district of Kashmir Valley faced quite a problem on Monday morning. The school is being used as a garrisoned polling station, and in the midst of a boycott call given by militant groups as well as Kashmir’s regional parties – National Conference and Peoples Democratic Party – the station did not have many visitors.
In fact, of the total 642 voters in the constituency, only 23 had turned up to vote till late afternoon, prompting two friends – Mushtaq and Nisar – to make an appeal to security forces guarding the station – to remove cameras that were covering the urban local body (ULB). The security forces obliged. Both Mushtaq and Nisar believed that all the cameras stationed outside the polling stations were “scaring away their supporters”.
The two are no ordinary men. Friends from childhood, Mushtaq is now fighting to become a Congress councillor and Nisar is from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The Government Girls Model Higher Secondary Institute in Budgam where polling was held.
The incident symbolises the overall mood of the ULB which entered its first phase on Monday. Fear of militant reprisals, social boycott and the dread of being treated as a pariah extends not just to the candidates backed by the BJP and Congress but also their supporters.
“People do not want their pictures splashed around news channels. The camera scared away my supporters. Only 23 have voted so far,” said Nisar who did not reveal much about himself other than the fact that his opponent is his childhood friend. Both Nisar and Mushtaq refused The Wire‘s request for a picture and soon after entered the polling booth where they stayed till the media had left the premises.
An elderly man in his 80s, probably the 24th or so voter, finally attempted to enter the station to cast his vote but was flummoxed by the media. “My name is Ali Mohammad and I live in Budgam,” were his last words before he panicked seeing an entourage of reporters approach him. Mohammad refused to even reveal his age and was escorted into the station by a policeman.
This was the story of Ward 5 in Bazaar Mohalla of Budgam district which has a total of 72 wards. On Monday, out of the six municipal committees, three went to polls – Chadoora, Khan Sahib and Budgam district. Most of the 72 wards in the district have been won without an election and only one station was open today – the government school. Twenty-three is not exactly the number of votes that both Nisar and Mushtaq would have liked to get, yet the former kept a tally and told The Wire that half of the 23 votes were in his favour.
“The security situation is very grim in the Valley. The low turnout is happening for a reason and media should be responsible for putting anyone’s life at risk – this includes that of the candidates as well as the voters,” said a police officer-in-charge of the government girls school. By evening, 109 voters had turned up to cast their vote here.
Also read: J&K Civic Polls: 13 BJP Candidates Elected Unopposed in Shopian
The situation was quite similar in other polling stations that The Wire visited. In Bemina’s Hamdania Colony, polls were held for ward 16 and 17. In ward number 16, not more than 20 voters had turned up till noon. Those who did turn up refused to talk to journalists. The voters were visibly uncomfortable when reporters were attempting to take pictures of the booth. One of the voters finally yelled asking journalists not to take pictures.
A polling agent told The Wire: “Media presence is not actually helping the cause”.
Bashir Ahmed Mir
Thirty voters turned up at one of Bemina’s wards – Bagh-e-Mehtab ward number 74 – where a marriage hall had been turned into a polling station. However, only eight votes had been cast till 3 pm and the BJP candidate had already begun seeing himself as the winner. Bashir Ahmed Mir had earlier unsuccessfully contested the assembly election as an independent. A resident of Humhama area of Srinagar, Mir said he was hopeful that he would win. “I know that out of the eight votes cast here, seven were in my favour,” said Mir, adding that he had been associated with the Congress.
Last month, Jammu and Kashmir’s two powerful regional parties – the National Conference and the Peoples Democratic Party – announced that they would be boycotting the urban local body and panchayat polls to be held in October and November, starting Monday. Both parties wanted the BJP-led Central government to make its stand clear on Article 35A, whose validity is being challenged in the Supreme Court.
Also read: Time to Clear Up the Fallacies Around Kashmir’s Article 35A
While the boycott call by Kashmir’s mainstream political parties came as a surprise to many, the Joint Resistance Leadership, supported by the J&K High Court Association gave a boycott call reiterating their stance on elections, terming them as “farce”.
Adding to the political complexities surrounding the ULB, militant group Hizbul Mujahideen also issued a threat to kill anyone participating in the elections. In a statement, the operational commander Riyaz Naikoo said those who have decided to vote should “bring their shrouds along” with panchayat poll forms.
Clashes
Meanwhile, clashes between security forces and protesters were reported in multiple areas where polling was held today, including Bagh-e-Mehtab and Bandipora.
A woman and a BJP candidate were injured in Bandipora. While BJP candidate was injured when he was coming out after casting his vote, the woman – who is pregnant – received pellet injuries in clashes between protestors and government forces. BJP candidate Adil Ahmad Buhru later released a video describing his narrow escape.
Additionally, internet remained blocked in the Valley since morning.
Latest figures
According to J&K’s chief electoral officer, till 3 pm Jammu district had witnessed 59% polling, Poonch 72% and Rajouri 78%. The overall percentage of Jammu region, according to CEO, was 61% at 3 pm.
The vote percentage in Kashmir region was 17.5% and in north Kashmir districts the figure stood at 25%, the CEO said. The overall percentage of polling in J&K was 53%.
According to official data, Anantnag district in southern Kashmir recorded a poll percentage of 7.3 while Budgam in central Kashmir recorded a percentage of 17.
Similarly Bandipora, Baramulla and Kupwara districts in northern Kashmir recorded a poll percentage of 3.4, 5.1 and 32.3 respectively.
The capital city Srinagar recorded a poll percentage of 6.2%.
The twin towns of Kargil and Leh recorded a poll percentage of 78.2 and 55.2 respectively. In Jammu division, the Jammu district recorded a percentage of 63.8, Poonch 73.1 and Rajouri 81.
All images by Azaan Javaid.
The story will be updated with the latest figures as and when they are released by the CEO, J&K.