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| Multi-cornered contest may mar fortune of many | | | NIRBHAY JAMMUAL
JAMMU, Nov 13: Some call it negative politics. Others treat it nothing but the sadistic approach when candidate after candidate file nomination papers for contesting the election. This is what is happening in Jammu and Kashmir where those who may forfeit their security deposit too are in the race. Their interest, as they know it,is not to win the election. Their purpose is to get grouped with those who contested the election. It is "I also ran the race" for them.The result is that in majority of 87 Assembly constituencies there are four to 10 candidates in the field. In some constituencies where all the poltical parties have fielded their candidates the number of contestants has swelled to over a dozen. It is not happening for the first time.In 2002 election there were 164 candidates in the field in 13 constituencies in the Jammu district. Jammu East and Jammu West constituencies had 17 each candidates in the field followed by 16 from Bishna constituency. In Srinagar constituency there were 70 candidates in the field which was followed by 16 in Anantnag district. In all there were 709 candidates in the field in 14 districts of the state.
In the ensuing election even if there were less than 700 candidates in the field still in majority of constituencies it was going to be a multi-cornered contest. Those who have studied in depth the entire poll process, right from filing of nomination papers to the announcement of the results, are of the view that wherever the number of candidates cross six it does affect the prospects of potential candidates. How? They explain that usually in most of the constituencies the winner wins the seat by a thin margin of a few hundred votes. As such the next loser could have won the election had not his or her vote bank suffered split. And those who engineer this split are none but the political minions whose ambition is to get enlisted among those who contested the Assembly or Lok Sabha election. Instances: Ajat Shatru Singh lost in 2002 from Nagrota seat by a margin of 67 votes.There were 11 candidates in the field and had there been only five Singh would have won the seat. R.S.Chib lost the Suchetgarh seat by a margin of 137 votes though he had polled 27.11 per cent of the total polled votes against 27.45 per cent polled by the winning congress candidate, Gharu Ram. There were three Rajput candidates in the field and they together polled over 25 per cent votes. Had they not been in the field Chib could have won the seat.
Some contest the election for the sake of contesting because at times they are able to collect money from people in the name of election funds. There are number of national level parties that wish to register their presence in Jammu and Kashmir. They encourage candidates to enter the poll fray after paying them some money. Hence even if the candidates lose their security deposit they are gainers. It is so because they collect money which they do not spend on the pre-poll campaign. The clever guys get some posters printed which are pasted on house walls. Others print letter heads with inscription "contested Assembly election."Well everybody, who is a registered voter, has the right to contest the election. But most of them do not utilize this right properly. Instead of entering the poll fray they should have campaigned for the candidates whose track record is good. Since India, including Jammu and Kashmir, has witnessed a mushroom growth of political parties one cannot expect to have a straight or at the most a triangular fight in most of the constituencies. |
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