NEW DELHI: After a wait of nearly 10 years, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has finally announced that assembly elections in occupied Jammu and Kashmir will be held in three phases, starting from September 18.
India’s Chief Election Commissioner, Rajeev Kumar, made the announcement at a press conference in New Delhi today. The assembly polls in IIOJK will occur on September 18, September 25, and October 1, with vote counting scheduled for October 4.
The first phase of polling, set for September 18, will include districts such as Pulwama, Islamabad, Shopian, Kulgam, Ramban, Kishtwar, and Doda. The second phase on September 25 will cover Ganderbal, Srinagar, Budgam, Poonch, Reasi, and Rajouri. The final phase on October 1 will include Bandipora, Kupwara, Baramulla, Udhampur, Jammu, Samba, and Kathua.
The last assembly elections in IIOJK occurred between November 25 and December 20, 2014. In August 2019, the BJP-led Indian government abrogated IIOJK’s special status and split the region into the union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. Since then, regional parties have been demanding elections, but their appeals were largely overlooked until the Supreme Court of India mandated that elections be held by September 30, 2024.
The BJP has shown reluctance to hold elections, expecting rejection from the local population, as evidenced during the Lok Sabha elections. The BJP struggled to find candidates in the Muslim-majority Kashmir Valley, and the parties it supported faced significant defeats.
Amidst these developments, the people of occupied Jammu and Kashmir continue to demand a plebiscite under UN supervision, asserting that elections under Indian rule are a façade intended to legitimize the military occupation by installing puppet leaders, rather than addressing the core issue of self-determination.
