On two-day visit, EC team to meet top security officials, Jammu and Kashmir leaders
CEC Rajiv Kumar, who will be accompanied by ECI members Gyanesh Kumar and Dr Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, will hold a series of meetings in Srinagar
The Election Commission of India (ECI) team led by chief election commissioner (CEC) will arrive in Srinagar on Thursday to initiate talks on assembly elections with top security officials and leaders of different political parties.
Lieutenant governor (L-G) Manoj Sinha said the ECI team will be here for two days to discuss assembly polls for the UT, which has been under President’s rule since June 2018.
CEC Rajiv Kumar, who will be accompanied by ECI members Gyanesh Kumar and Dr Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, will hold a series of meetings in Srinagar on Thursday and Friday and will also attend an election-related programme in Lal Chowk on Friday and there was a possibility that ECI team could travel to some rural areas during their stay in Kashmir. The team will also travel to Jammu.
“All arrangements for the meetings have been finalised,” a senior officer said.
The team will also hold meetings with the Jammu and Kashmir chief secretary and the director general of police (DGP).
The CEC will hold meetings with leaders of different political parties at the Sher-i-Kashmir International Convention Centre (SKICC).
“A series of meetings are scheduled in Srinagar and after that the CEC will take the decision about the assembly polls,” a senior officer said.
The CEC will hold meetings with top security officers, deputy commissioners and senior superintendents of police from various districts to get feedback on the ground situation. Meanwhile, the state election commission has already started the preparations for the holding of assembly polls in the UT. Besides electoral revision, the checking and testing of EVMs has been initiated and tenders for election-related equipment have also been floated.
“For the first time, we feel the elections will be held though there are some reservations but indications are strong,” a senior leader of a political party said.
Last year, the leaders of different parties had met CEC in New Delhi under the leadership of National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah and had demanded the holding of assembly polls.
After the recent Lok Sabha elections, which saw a robust campaign and a record voter turnout of 58%, the highest in 35 years, ECI had dropped hints that assembly polls will be held at an earliest. Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to Srinagar in June had also mentioned elections and said that statehood will be restored.
Abdullah on Tuesday said he was hopeful that the election date for Jammu and Kashmir will be fixed. “They (ECI) will come and the election date will be fixed,” he told reporters in Srinagar.
People’s Democratic Party youth president Waheed-ur-Rehman Parra termed the visit as a routine process, adding, “It’s routine, let’s see what comes out of it,” he said. Congress general secretary Mir Iqbal said the party is hopeful that elections will be held at the earliest since the process has already been delayed in the past.