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Delimitation commission’s proposal: Utter disregard for topography and tribal population, says CPI(M)
CPI(M) leader Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami said there is a general feeling among the masses in both the regions — Jammu and Kashmir — that the commission’s recommendations are in line with the current ruling dispensation
CPI(M) leader Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami on Sunday said the draft proposal of the delimitation commission has recommended a strange geographical layout for redrawing the boundaries of several parliamentary and assembly poll constituencies in Jammu and Kashmir. “The draft proposal seems even incongruous with the commission’s previous argument of taking into account the topography and difficult terrain while re-mapping the poll constituencies,” he said.
The commission has proposed an arbitrary overhaul in the existing territorial constituencies with no regard for even the terrain, let alone the population that tends to be a basic parameter for redrawing the boundaries of assembly and parliamentary segments, he added. “The draft proposal lays bare the utter disregard for the topography and tribal population,” said Tarigami.
There is a general feeling among the masses in both the regions — Jammu and Kashmir — that the commission’s recommendations are in line with the current ruling dispensation, he said further.
The CPI(M) has moved the Supreme Court to challenge the Reorganisation Act itself under which the delimitation process has been initiated, he added.
Bid to disenfranchise people of Kashmir: PC
J&K People’s Conference led by Sajjad Lone said the ongoing delimitation was aimed at disempowerment of people of Kashmir.
In a statement, the party said that the exercise of delimitation was an attempt to disenfranchise the people of Kashmir. “There seems to be no let up in belittling them (Kashmir people) and showing them their place. Irrationalism is an ugly and a sad constant in the delimitation exercise. And it is not the macro division only. Even when it comes to internal redrawing of the respective constituencies, there is a lot of invention and creation,” the party said.
It said that the delimitation commission’s refusal to change its earlier assertions are least surprising.
The Delimitation Commission has proposed an overhaul of assembly and Lok Sabha constituencies in Jammu and Kashmir in its draft report proposing redrawing of the Anantnag parliamentary seat by including Rajouri and Poonch from the Jammu region, besides carrying out massive changes in the Kashmir division. Six assembly constituencies have been added to Jammu division while only one has been enhanced in Kashmir.
National Conference and Peoples Democratic Party have rejected the proposal while Congress has expressed its strong reservations. BJP has said that it trusts the legitimacy and integrity of the commission.
“And as if to add salt to the wounds of the Kashmiris we have a new wondrous invention in the form of a parliamentary constituency invented by merging two regions - South Kashmir and Rajouri. The inhabitants of these two regions have totally different aspirations, the problems and challenges they face are completely different, the topography is different and yet for reasons best known to the commission they actually merged two distinct regions to carve out a single Parliamentary Constituency,” the Peoples Conference said.
“They are trying to act as the new disruptors - disrupt the political system, disrupt the political equilibrium and disrupt and confuse the existing political class,” it said.
