Polling underway for last phase of municipal polls in Jammu and Kashmir
Srinagar, Oct 16 : Polling was underway for the fourth and last phase of municipal elections in Jammu and Kashmir to seal the fate of 156 candidates in fray in Srinagar and Ganderbal districts.
Polling began at 6 am amidst stringent security arrangements, officials said. They said the voting will take place at 308 polling stations across the state and would end at 4 pm.
Eight municipal bodies spanning across six districts - all in Kashmir Valley were scheduled to go to polls in the fourth and final phase of the elections. However, out of the eight, only two will see voting, while there will be no contest in the rest of the six bodies.
The rest of the bodies Pattan in Baramulla district of north Kashmir, Pampore, Pulwama and Khrew in Pulwama district in south, Shopian Municipal Committee in Shopian district in south and Dooru Verinag in Anantnag district also in south Kashmir will see no voting either because the candidates won unopposed or no nominations were submitted.
The officials said 156 candidates are in the fray for 37 wards of two urban local bodies for the fourth phase comprising a total electorate of 250794 electors.
They said 12 wards are going to polls in Municipal Committee Ganderbal with a total electorate of 8,491 voters where 38 candidates are in the fray and voting will take place at 12 polling stations.
For 24 wards of Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) with a total electorate of 241043, 113 candidates are in the fray and 295 polling stations have been established for the purpose, the officials said.
They said repoll is taking place at Polling Station number nine - Bachidarwaza of Makhdoom Sahab (ward number 41) - where five candidates are in the fray with a total electorate of 1,260.
The officials said massive security arrangements have been put in place for the smooth conduct of the polls.
Municipal elections, covering 79 municipal bodies with an electorate of about 17 lakh, are being held in four phases. A total of 3,372 nominations have been filed for 1,145 wards.
National Conference, along with PDP and CPI(M), have boycotted the polls due to the legal challenge to Article 35A of the Constitution in the Supreme Court.
The voter turnout in the first two phases of the civic polls in the valley has been low. While 8.3 per cent of the electorate turned up to vote in the 83 wards in the first phase on October 8, the poll percentage fell to an abysmal 3.4 per cent in the second phase held on 10 October. The third phase of polling for civic bodies in Kashmir 13 October witnessed a low turnout of just 3.49 per cent, in line with the trend set in first two phases.
The government has declared holiday on the day of poll in the municipal areas going to polls so as to enable the voters to cast their vote.
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Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
