The Bharatiya Janta Party-led Union government is mulling the option of kickstarting a political dialogue ahead of holding polls in the region after the completion of the ongoing Delimitation process.
The Delimitation Commission headed by Retired Supreme Court Judge Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai was constituted on March 6, 2020, for a period of one year to delimit the constituencies in Jammu and Kashmir. However, it has not visited J&K since it was established.
On March 4, the Union ministry of law and justice issued a notification extending the tenure of the commission by one year. The commission’s term was coming to end on March 5, 2021. Recently, the Delimitation Commission had asked all 20 deputy commissioners of the region to share data pertaining to electorates and other compositions in their districts. The commission is also expected to pay a visit to the region and holding one to one meetings with the representatives of the common people.
In the days to come the Centre is expected to send an open invite or convene an all parties meet to discuss the political situation in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
Political activity on hold since August 5, 2019
Since August 5, 2019- the day Article 370 was abrogated the political activity had virtually come to a halt.
Several mainstream politicians including three former Chief Ministers, Dr Farooq Abdullah, his son Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti along with several former cabinet ministers, separatists, political activists and others were detained to ensure peace in the region. As the situation normalised and political activity was peaking COVID-19 pandemic scuttled the entire political process.
What is the agenda of the GOI?
The ultimate motive of the Union government is to prepare a ground for holding fresh elections soon after the completion of the ongoing Delimitation process in the region.
For this to happen peacefully it is imperative to hold parleys and evolve a broader consensus among the regional and national political parties active in the region.
In the days to come the Centre is expected to send an open invite or convene an all parties meet to discuss the political situation in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
The recent meeting of the Peoples Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) at the residence of PDP (Peoples Democratic Party) Chief Mehbooba Mufti also triggered a fresh round of speculations.
Already emissaries of the Union government are working behind the scene to break the ice and bring the disgruntled politicians to the dialogue table.
NC willing to participate in the Delimitation exercise
For the time being the principal opposition party, Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (NC) is keen on joining the dialogue process and participating in the ongoing Delimitation exercise.
On the other hand, PDP Chief Mehbooba Mufti is resisting all such attempts and is still adamant about softening her party’s stand vis-a-vis the Delimitation exercise and participating in the electoral process without ensuring restoration of the special status of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir.
In the coming days, it remains to be seen whether the Central government would be able to create a conducive atmosphere and win their hearts and minds to chalk out a new political discourse in the region or war of words would continue to impede the political process, long due in the region.
Note:
1. Text in Blue points to additional data on the topic.
2. The views expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of PGurus.
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[…] hues. Convinced that Jammu will get at least 54-56 seats out of 90 and Kashmir only 34-36, if the Delimitation Commission followed the criteria as laid down by the J&K Reorganisation Act, 2019; that the political […]