With unprecedented security, the prestigious Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir is going for the poll on May 13.
2,135 polling stations have been set up for polling for the Srinagar Parliamentary constituency spread over five districts namely Srinagar, Pulwama, Budgam, Ganderbal, and Shopian. Although there are two dozen candidates in the fray, the real contest is among candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party, the National Conference, and the J&K Apni Party.
Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi from the NC, Waheed-ur-Rehman Para from the PDP, and Mohammad Ashraf Mir from the J&K Apni Party are the prominent candidates for this seat. Due to terror threats and boycott calls by the separatist groups, the Srinagar Parliamentary constituency recorded low turnout in successive elections.
First time since the inception of militancy in J&K, the election in Kashmir Valley will be held without any poll boycott call. None of the separatist groups of Kashmir has issued a call to boycott elections. While the majority of the separatist leaders have been lodged in different jails, their supporters have not issued any poll boycott call.
Senior separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq has also maintained a guarded silence on this issue. After 1984 Srinagar seat recorded the lowest polling in successive elections due to threats of terrorists and boycott call by the separatist groups, Srinagar Parliamentary constituency always recorded the lowest polling in successive elections.
First time in the last three decades, separatist groups have not given a call of poll boycott so authorities are expecting high-turn out. The last time was in 1984 when the Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency recorded 73.51 percent polling and the National Conference candidate Abdul Rashid Kubli had secured 81.50 percent of the total polled votes.
In the 1989 Lok Sabha elections when terrorism started in the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, there was zero percent polling on the Srinagar Lok Sabha seat as the National Conference candidate Mohammad Shafi Bhat was elected unopposed. In the 1999 Parliamentary constituency had recorded only 11.93 percent polling on the Srinagar Lok Sabha seat.”
