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| Elections without former CMs | | |
Former J&K chief ministers, Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti have decided to stay away from assembly elections till J&K’s statehood is restored but their parties, National Conference and Peoples Democratic Party would contest the polls.
It’s strange that the leaders who have to lead from the front have decided to take a back seat while the second rung leaders are being asked to take a lead role.
It seems that Omar and Mehbooba want to see how the people will react and whom they would vote for. The redrawing of the assembly constituencies has brought Jammu region at par with Kashmir vis-à-vis distribution of the assembly seats.
The dominance of Kashmir based parties has ended and if the national parties do well in Jammu region there is every possibility about Dogra becoming a J&K Chief Minister for the first time in 70-years.
After August 5, 2019—when the Centre announced its decision to abrogate J&K’s special status and bifurcated it into two Union Territories—political scenario in J&K has changed completely. In Kashmir many new parties have come to the fore while the NC and PDP are struggling to regain their lost ground.
Same is the case with the Congress Party, after the resignation of the veteran party leader, Ghulam Nabi Azad, many Congress leaders in J&K have joined his party. Azad and others leaving the Congress is a big jolt to the ‘Grand Old Party’ in Jammu and Kashmir.
Given the changed political equations, Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti seem to have taken a call to stay away from the polls and see how things unfold. Both the leaders seem to have understood that reaching the Chief Minister’s office is not going to be a cakewalk and even if they manage to reach there they won’t be able to exercise their powers fully as in the Union Territory the Lieutenant Governor is the head. And his decision is final.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah during his recent visit to J&K had announced that assembly elections in J&K would be held soon and after his announcement the poll preparations have commenced in the Union Territory and it appears that polls will be held early next year. |
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