A Sham Election

An abysmal voter turnout and backdoor entry charges make a mockery of civic elections in the state

- Asit Jolly And Moazum Mohammad

Muzamil Jan, a candidate for the ongoing civic polls from Srinagar’s Dalgate ward, was among 15 aspirants in the Kashmir Valley who withdrew from the contest on October 5, the day militants gunned down two National Conference (NC) workers in the heart of the J&K capital. The ‘message’ carried through to polling day (for the first of four phases) on October 8, when a mere 8.2 per cent of the 84,000-strong electorate ventured out to vote.

Besides the looming militant threat—Hizbul Mujahideen commander Riyaz Naikoo has threatened to “blind candidates with sulphuric acid”—the miserable turnout was also due to the fact that both major Valley parties, the NC and People’s Democratic Party (PDP), opted out of the fray.