The Legitimate Desk Security
Last week the former chief minister and Vice president National Conference Omar Abdulla called an All Party meet in Srinagar to discuss the prevailing political situation in Kashmir. In the meeting the main political party PDP despite the invitation didn’t participate, however the meeting went on.
Subsequently Omar Abdullah after the culmination of meeting addressed the media and raised his pitch for the protection of Article 35 A against which the petition is heard in the supreme court of India.
Omar who has been the first chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir who for the first time in last three decades conducted the Panchayat elections in 2012 clearly refused to participate in the upcoming Panchayat and local body elections in state.
The elections are scheduled to be held from October this year and the notification has already been issued. The notification was issued for the conducting of elections after Omar Abdullah addressed the media and decided to not participate.
This was evidently making it clear that New Delhi is in a serious mood to institutionalize the grass root level democracy in a state where the delegation of powers to the grass root level was always challenging.
Militancy is at the highest level in last one decade and the warnings against participation by the militant groups like Lashker-e-toiba and Hizbul Mujahideen have already made lots of people scare.
Those parties who have been in past on fore front to conduct the democratic exercises in valley also stay aloof notwithstanding the reasons.
For alone Panchayat elections 32000 Panchs and Sarpanchs would be elected, roughly half of its figure is from tense Kashmir region.
While there is no look back for New Delhi, it has already blamed the parties who boycotted and sought New Delhi’s position on article 35 A after linking it with the elections and appointing an advocate Tushar Mehta by state as blackmailers.
In the Supreme Court during last hearing Mehta had spoken out of brief given by the state government and reportedly admitted that Article 35 A is a discriminatory law.
Until now for the failure of institutions and other political affairs in state there was a blame game often between New Delhi and successive state governments.
Today New Delhi is directly involved in Kashmir affairs and the largest democratic exercise is taking place under its supervision.
Now the onus and the sheer responsibilities lies on the centre government which is not only responsible to hold the elections in free and fare manner, however, it has to ensure all those who are joining the contest are offered all the possible security measures.
The elections which BJP led government at New Delhi is aiming to sell as a poll plank in 2019 may otherwise turn into a quagmire for it.
Back in valley it will give every reason for the parties like NC and PDP who stayed away from the polls to prove New Delhi’s decision wrong and self interested that may push the situation to the another low and may further vitiate the situation for Lok Sabha elections scheduled to be held in 2019.
