Democracy weakening rapidly in kashmir

The low voter turnout in all the three Lok Sabha constituencies in the Kashmir Valley—Srinagar, Baramulla and Anantnag—should be a matter of huge concern not only for the government but also among the people at large. The third phase of the election in the Anantnag seat, the first time polling was held in phases in a single constituency, ended on Monday and the turnout was a mere 8.76 per cent. This is far lower than the 28.8 per cent witnessed in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

In the worst militancy-hit districts of Pulwama and Shopian in the Anantnag constituency, the voting percentage was only 2.14 per cent and 2.88 per cent. According to media reports, not a single vote was cast in over 200 out of 695 polling booths in the two districts. Srinagar and Baramulla Lok Sabha constituencies were better than Anantnag, recording 14.1 per cent and 34.7 per cent turnout. But it was lower than 2014, when the voting percentage was 25.8 per cent and 39.1 per cent respectively. What is worse is that voters were apathetic to the democratic process even when Kashmiri separatist organisations were not able to actively campaign to boycott the elections.

They did issue an appeal to the people, as they always do, not to participate in the polls but they were unable to canvass against it because almost all the separatist leaders are lodged in jails. Political parties have blamed logistical problems for the low turnout. The state government, for reasons of security, clubbed many polling stations and as a result, voters had to walk several kilometres to reach them. But this cannot be the only reason for the pathetic turnout.

The people, clearly, are disillusioned. The year 2016, when Hizb-ul-Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani was killed, can be termed as a watershed. The sense of alienation is now deep-rooted which the government must address quickly. Mainstream political parties are equally to blame, they have failed to convince the voters to come out of their homes. If this is not reversed, parties could become irrelevant in the future, which will be the beginning of the end of democracy in the Valley.