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| After Jammu, Udhampur seat too lost for separatists | | | Separatists' call for poll boycott seems to have had no impact in Udhampur-Kathua Lok Sabha constituency where voters in large numbers walked to the polling booths for casting their votes on Thursday. It was over 70 per cent polling in the constituency. One can imagine the level of excitement among the voters that the constituency recorded about 28 per cent polling till 11 A.M which was a shade above than the one recorded in Jammu-Poonch constituency where polling was held on April 10. By midday the polling percentage had swelled to 46 . And when over 68 per cent polling was recorded in Jammu-Poonch constituency political pundits had predicted that separatists have lost Jammu-Poonch constituency and the way people were seen in long rows outside over 1800 polling booths out of the total of 2051 polling stations clearly indicated that separatists have lost the entire Jammu region where people ignored call for poll boycott. And separatists had already received indication of their having lost their hold, whatever they earlier had claimed, on the entire Jammu region and that has been the reason for them to start their poll boycott campaign with additional verve and vigour. In this context the JKLF Chief,Mohd.Yasin Mailk, has been visiting Various areas in the valley with the sole purpose of motivating people to stay indoors on the days of polling. And Syed Ali Shah Geelani, who heads hardliners among the separatists,has lost no time in reviving his slogan in favour of poll boycott.
During the last about a month Geelani had been in New Delhi where he was being treated for a number of body ailments.After returning to Kashmir he issued a statement appealing to people to respond fully to his call for poll boycott. Other separatist leaders too have been trying to motivate people to stay away from polling.In fact these separatists have been urging people to boycott polls as these elections,whether to the Assembly or to the Lok Sabha,were not a substitute for the plebiscite that has been provided for under the UN resolution on Kashmir some 66 years ago.And in the past whenever some of these separatists,especially those belonging to the camp of moderates,were reminded of people defying their poll boycott campaign they would say that people participated in the elections for ensuring good,roads,health care, education, better employment avenues and freedom from energy crisis. Yes, people elect a party to form the Government simply to ensure that their day to day problems were mitigated. Whatever may be the reason for people to defy separatists call for poll boycott these separatists need to realize that they have lost the entire Jammu region and it may be so that people may not fully respond to their call for staying away from the poll process.
Well polling for Anantnag constituency is due on April 26,in Srinagar polling is to take place on April 30 and that in Baramulla people will vote on May 7 alongwith people in the Ladakh constituency.The three seats in the Kashmir valley are very crucial for the National Conference and the PDP.Essentially the contest in Srinagar,Anantnag and Baramulla is going to be between the PDP and the NC.Win for the NC will reestablish its strong influence among people in the Valley.
In case the PDP manages to win all the three seats it may indicate that the 15-year old PDP has overthrown a 76-year old NC.It is believed that poor polling percentage may help the NC and in case the three constituencies in the valley recorded over 55 per cent polling PDP may wrest one to two seats from the NC. That is why PDP leaders have started reminding people,rather voters in the valley,that if they responded to the separatists' call for poll boycott it may prove advantageous for the NC.
And one senior PDP leader has quipped "no vote means vote for NC."But these issues have no interest for separatists who wish to use all their energy and resources for ensuring poor polling percentage which could establish their foothold in parts of the valley. In this context they may seek help from militants so that these gunto-ting youth created as much scare as they had managed to create in 1989 Lok Sabha poll.
But the situation that existed in Kashmir in 1989 is totally different from the current scenario in the valley which may not help separatists to reconquer Kashmir. |
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