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| Militants plan to scare voters away from polling booths | | | | If field reports are any guide militants were trying to crate scare among people in Anantnag district of south Kashmir in the wake of the ensuing by-election for the Anantnag Assembly constituency.Already parts of south Kashmir,especially areas in Pulwama,Shopina and Kulgam have remained the centre of militancy related violence because of repeated encounters between militants and the security forces.The scene of violence seems to have shifted to Anantnag area where Chief Minister,Mehbooba Mufti is to fight a poll battle for her survival as Chief Minister and in politics.The polling has been postponed to June 22 instead of June 19 but not many days are left for the parties,especially the PDP,Mehbooba being its candidate,for a pre-poll campaign.However,killing of three BSF personnel and injuring seven others on Friday when a group of militants attacked a BSF convoy which was on its way to Srinagar from Jammu.On Saturday two policemen were killed in a militant attack in south Kashmir's Anantnag district.Preliminary reports suggest that militants fired at the policemen from a close range. Two cops, identified as Bashir Ahmad and Reyaz Ahmad, died in the attack.This is the second attack in last 24 hours in south Kashmir. Three BSF men were killed and seven injured on Friday afternoon. These attacks were carried out to create scare among people in the Assembly constituency of Anantnag from where Mehbooba is trying to enter the Assembly from where her father had been elected in 2014 Assembly poll. In fact the by-poll had been necessasitated by the demise of Mufti Mohd.Sayeed and since Mehbooba is a member of Lok Sabha she was supposed to get elected to either the Assembly or to the Legislative Council.She seems to have opted for a more daring and democratic process otherwise she could have been easily elected to the Legislative Council. Though the separatists have not issued any call for poll boycott to the people yet they may do so which militants may try to enforce as they had been doing so in the past. However, in 2014 or during earlier Assembly or Lok Sabha elections separatists' call for poll boycott evoked slightly poor response from the voters who were determined to vote for change. And their vote did bring out change of guard. First it was Mufti Sayeed who headed a coalition Government in partnership with the BJP and later it was his daughter Mehbooba Mufti who too forged an alliance with the BJP for the formation of the Government. Hence this time militants do not want to leave it to the choice of voters who would have responded to the call for poll boycott being given by the separatists provided separatists receive some militants. It is in this context that militants have started targeting security personnel which is bound to create added scare among people, especially the voters. The plan of militants is to ensure very poor polling which could affect the image of Mehbooba. However, the BJP too have started opposing this move by wooing voters belonging to the displaced Kashmiri Pandit community who, otherwise, are registered voters. Reports say that there are over 20,000 KP voters, registered for casting their votes in the Anantnag Assembly by-poll, settled in Jammu, Udhampur and Delhi. These migrant voters are being approached by senior BJP leaders for supporting Mehbooba's candidature. If majority of these displaced voters cast their votes in favour of the PDP Mehbooba is sure to win despite poor polling. Inputs from intelligence agencies indicate that militants may target security convoys and camps besides the police stations so that voters dare not move out on the polling day. Militants and separatists have framed the plan together and they want that even if Mehbooba wins let she carry the blame of a win because of KP voters votes. |
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