DDC elections are almost over in Jammu & Kashmir but this maiden election exercise after the downgrading of Jammu & Kashmir from a state to a union territory and withdrawal of special status has been a new experience to all the stakeholders including the voters, the poll contestants and the people in the government and the J&K Election Department overseeing the elections. The maiden DDC elections being the first election exercise in Jammu & Kashmir after it’s downgrading from a state to a union territory and withdrawal of special status on August 5 last year has attracted the attention of the people in the government, politics, media and civil society both in Jammu & Kashmir and as well as other parts of the country. The Election Commission did not set a good precedence for DDC elections with the announcement of the creation of DDC territorial constituencies and as well as the dates for the elections in a short span of few days without the consent and consultation of the political parties-the main stakeholders. So the intents of holding the maiden DDC elections came into question right from the moment the decision of constituting district development councils (DDCs) through an assembly like election exercise was announced. After the announcement of DDC elections the security to the poll contestants by Jammu & Kashmir Government attracted allegations of huge discrimination from majority of the political parties including the signatories of the Peoples’ Alliance For Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) and other smaller parties but the government did not bother to address the bigger concerns of security to the poll contestants despite the killing of many political workers and security men during electioneering. An irresponsible response to the allegations of discrimination in matters of security to poll contestants and selective curbs on the movement of the heads of several top regional mainstream parties witnessed during electioneering went against the promises of free, fair and transparent elections yet again in Jammu & Kashmir.
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The conduct and behaviour of the election authorities and the officers connected with the security of the candidates, voters and the polling staff did not show indications of transparency and neutrality in the management and supervision of the election process. As the counting of votes is yet to commence, more unpleasant incidents if allowed to re-occur on the counting day could change the minds of the people about the electoral politics in Jammu & Kashmir as usual.
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The incident of an alleged manhandling of a group of journalists by a senior police officer and the delay in the commencement of voting at a polling station in Anantnag last week lend credence to allegations of electoral frauds leveled against the government by most of the contesting parties particularly the Peoples’ Alliance For Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) and several other smaller parties. So the conduct and behaviour of the election authorities and the officers connected with the security of the candidates, voters and the polling staff did not show indications of transparency and neutrality in the management and supervision of the election process. As the counting of votes is yet to commence, more unpleasant incidents if allowed to re-occur on the counting day could change the minds of the people about the electoral politics in Jammu & Kashmir as usual.
