Early Times Report
Jammu, April 8: The charge of the people of Jammu province that Kashmir has more representation in the Lok Sabha and they are under-represented in the country's highest law-making body is as well-founded as it is genuine. Similarly, their demand that the Lok Sabha constituencies be delimited so that they got due representation in this law-making body is also justifiable and well-founded.
Kashmir returns 3 members to the Lok Sabha and Jammu only two. Ladakh sends one member to the Lok Sabha. The land area of Jammu province is almost two-time that of Kashmir and the bulk of Jammu's land area if hilly, mountainous and inaccessible, even treacherous. It is over 26,000 square kilometers and Kashmir's land area is less than 16,000 square kilometers.
That the existing delimitation makes unjust, humiliating and invidious distinctions between the voters in Jammu and those in Kashmir could be seen from the figures released recently by the election authorities as far as Jammu and Baramulla Lok Sabha constituencies are concerned.
The Jammu-Poonch parliamentary constituency covers four districts of Samba, Jammu, Rajouri and Poonch and has 20 assembly segments. The number of voters is 20,47,299. In the 2014 General Elections, the number of voters in the Jammu-Poonch constituency was 18,48,155, an increase of 1,99, 144 voters in ten years.
As for the Baramulla Lok Sabha constituency, it covers three districts of Kupwara, Baramulla and Bandipora, one less than Jammu constituency, and has 12 assembly segments, 8 less as compared to Jammu. The number of voters in the Baramulla parliamentary constituency is 13,17,738 -- 7,29,561 less than the number of voters in the Jammu parliamentary constituency. In the 2014 general elections, the number of voters in this constituency was11,90,766. In other words, the number of voters in this constituency increased by 1,26, 972 voters in 10 years.
To be more precise, while the number of voters in the Jammu Lok Sabha constituency increased by 1,99,144 voters, the number of voters in the Bramulla constituency increased by 1,26,972 voters, a huge difference of 72,172 voters.
All these figures speak for themselves. It would be only desirable if the authorities look all these facts in the face and act to meet the genuine demand of the discriminated against people of Jammu province. |
