The Kashmir Dialogues
JAMMU, June 18: In a significant move towards holding Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has appointed Union Minister for Coal and Mines G. Kishan Reddy as the Election Incharge for the Union Territory. This appointment comes as Union Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP president J.P. Nadda, and party general secretary (Incharge Organizations) B.L. Santosh are set to meet with five senior leaders of the J&K BJP unit after June 21 to discuss the prevailing security and political situation.
BJP President J.P. Nadda today announced the appointment of Election Incharges for four states/UTs, including Jammu and Kashmir, Maharashtra, Haryana, and Jharkhand. While Maharashtra, Haryana, and Jharkhand are scheduled to go to polls before the end of this year, the Election Commission of India has yet to set a date for Jammu and Kashmir, though the Supreme Court has mandated that the Assembly elections be conducted before September 30, 2024.
G. Kishan Reddy, who has previous experience with Jammu and Kashmir as the Union Minister of State for Home and later as the Tourism Minister, has now been entrusted with overseeing the election process in the UT. He is currently serving as the Cabinet Minister for Coal and Mines.
Additional key appointments include Union Ministers Bhupendra Yadav and Ashwini Choubey as Election Incharge and co-Incharge for Maharashtra, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and former Tripura Chief Minister Biplav Kumar Deo for Haryana, and Shivraj Singh Chouhan along with Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma for Jharkhand.
BJP J&K President Ravinder Raina expressed gratitude towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah for their commitment to holding Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir. He also thanked J.P. Nadda for appointing the experienced G. Kishan Reddy as the Election Incharge, highlighting the party’s readiness for the upcoming elections, pending the Election Commission’s decision.
In the upcoming meeting, five senior BJP leaders from J&K, including Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh, BJP UT Chief Ravinder Raina, General Secretary Organizations Ashok Koul, National Secretary Dr. Narinder Singh, and MP Jugal Kishore Sharma, will discuss the political and security landscape of Jammu and Kashmir. Originally scheduled for today, the meeting was postponed due to the engagements of national leaders and will now take place after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Kashmir on June 20 and 21.
The discussions are expected to cover both political and security issues, including the conduct of the Assembly elections in the Union Territory. Prime Minister Modi and Home Minister Shah have previously committed to holding the Assembly elections soon, as reiterated in their election rallies during the Parliamentary polls. Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar has also indicated that the Assembly polls will follow the strong turnout seen in the Parliamentary elections.
In preparation for the elections, the Election Commission has recently invited non-recognised but registered parties to apply for their preferred election symbols. The last Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir were held in November-December 2014 when it was still a full-fledged state.
Jammu and Kashmir’s Assembly comprises 90 seats, with provisions for the nomination of two women MLAs, two Kashmiri migrants (one of whom must be a woman), and a refugee from Pakistan-occupied Jammu Kashmir (PoJK). Additionally, twenty-four seats have been reserved for PoJK beyond the 90-member Assembly.
Sheikh Mudasir
