Nine days to go, the J&K government’s decision to shift and huddle scores of candidates in guarded accommodations is being blamed for the subdued and lacklustre campaigning in the maiden District Development Council (DDC) polls in central and south Kashmir.
There is no visible door-to-door canvassing or any publicity carried out by most of the candidates in the villages, which will go to polls in the first phase on November 28. It’s also the first elections since the Centre ended J&K’s special status last year.
“Immediately after I filed my nomination from a Pulwama block, I was shifted from my home to the Entrepreneurship Development Institute (EDI) building in Pampore. Now, I am not allowed to campaign. My opponent was allowed to campaign though even today,” Mansha Jan, an independent candidate contesting the DDC polls, told The Hindu.
Shazreena Jan, a candidate from Pampore’s Mandal Pal block, said the lack of sufficient vehicles “is also hampering and delaying campaigning”.
“Only rotational campaigning is allowed. It depends if the vehicle provided by the district administration is available or not,” she said.
Around 42 candidates, including those who won the 2018 panchayat polls, are being put up in the fortified EDI building to protect them from militant attacks.
“We are not allowed to step outside the premises by the police. We cannot even buy a cigarette or visit family members. There is a 78-year-old ailing sarpanch, who is also without medicine and proper clothing in this winter. We want to go home. We have no threat from militants. We will give it in writing. I want to campaign for my colleague in the DDC polls,” Manzoor Ahmad Wani, a panch from Pulwama’s Sangarwani said.
Rajinder Singh, an independent candidate from Pulwama’s Tral, said he filed his nomination on November 13 and was shifted to a protected building in the night. “My opponent from Tral is home and is campaigning. How will I win the polls?”
A Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, wishing anonymity, alleged that BJP candidate like Javaid Qadri from Shopian is allowed to door-to-door campaign along with security but strong non-BJP contenders are not.
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“Security threat is being used as a tool to tilt these polls in south Kashmir,” he said.
A senior police officer in Awantipora said those having a security threat were shifted. “We are only protecting them from likely militant attacks,” he said.
Several candidates have been put up in security zones in north Kashmir’s Bandipora too. In Central Kashmir’s Ganderbal, adjacent to Bandipora, the trend of huddling of candidates at secured locations has spread panic among the candidates.
“If I am shifted from my village, I will withdraw my nomination. There is no fear of militancy here. Why would people have faith in me and vote for me if I campaign from a far off guarded and walled location?” Nissar Ahmad, an independent panch candidate from Ganderbal’s Nuner, said.
280 DDC seats and around 12,500 vacant seats of sarpanch, panch, and urban bodies will be filled in the eight-phase polls concluding on December 22.