Over 35,000 displaced Kashmiri Pandits from across the country are eligible to vote at 24 special polling stations today, marking a significant moment in the first phase of the three-phase Assembly elections in South Kashmir. This marks the first Assembly election in 35 years since the mass exodus of Kashmiri Pandits, with the Election Commission of India (ECI) simplifying the voting process by removing the previously required M-Forms, following requests from J&K BJP leadership.
Displaced Kashmiri Pandits will cast their votes in 16 constituencies across Anantnag, Pulwama, Shopian, and Kulgam districts of South Kashmir. According to Assistant Returning Officer (ARO) Migrants, Deepak Kumar, 35,500 Kashmiri migrant voters residing in Jammu, Udhampur, and Delhi are eligible to vote at the 24 special polling stations set up for them today.
Of these 24 special polling booths, 19 are located in Jammu district, one in Udhampur, and four in Delhi. Kumar stated that 34,852 displaced voters are registered in Jammu, where they will vote at 19 polling stations. In Udhampur, 648 voters are registered to vote at a single polling station, while four polling stations in Delhi will accommodate the remaining voters. Despite the large Kashmiri Pandit community in Delhi, only around 600 individuals have registered to vote there.
“All necessary arrangements have been made to ensure free and fair polling today,” Kumar confirmed. Enhanced security measures are in place at all polling stations, and provisions have been made to assist elders, women, and voters with disabilities.
Kashmiri migrant voters who choose to vote in person using Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) will have access to 24 polling stations, including the 19 in Jammu, one in Udhampur, and four in Delhi. Authorities have ensured the safe delivery of polling materials, including EVMs, to the respective polling stations. Security forces and election officials are being deployed to their assigned locations.
Polling booths in Jammu are set up at various locations, including:
Government College for Women Gandhi Nagar
IIM Jammu
Canal Road
North Zone Accountancy Training Institute Muthi
Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Janipur
Migrant School Purkhoo
Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Complex Golepulli
Talab Tillo
Government Mixed Higher Secondary School Muthi
Migrant School Nagrota
Government Higher Secondary School Jagti
Anuradha Higher Secondary School Barnai
Agriculture University Complex, Udheywala
J&K Board of School Education Rehari
Government Middle School Jagti
Kendriya Vidyalaya Bantalab
Sant Mela Singh College of Education near Digiana Ashram
Sarvodaya Public School, By Pass Santra Morh
Government Girls Higher Secondary School Miran Sahab
Birla Open Minds International School, Channi Himmat
NSM College Anand Nagar Bohri
In Udhampur, the polling booth is set up at Government ITI Udhampur. In Delhi, four polling stations are located at:
J&K House, 5 Prithviraj Road
Office of Deputy Director Horticulture Planning and Marketing, Shalimar Bagh
Government Girls Higher Secondary School, Paprawat
Arwacin International School, F Block Dilshad Garden
Six candidates from the Kashmiri Pandit community are contesting in this phase of the elections:
BJP’s Vir Saraf and Apni Party’s Mahraj Krishan Yogi from the Shangus seat
Sanjay Saraf from the Anantnag seat as a Lok Jan Shakti Party (LJSP) candidate
Dileep Pandita, an Independent candidate, from the Shangus-Anantnag seat
Rosy Raina and Arun Raina, representing the Republic Party of India and NCP respectively, are contesting from the Rajpora and Pulwama seats.
Authorities have assured voters of a smooth and secure election process as the first phase of the Assembly elections proceeds today.
