25.11.14

State Elections' Phase I

Jharkhand





Jammu,Kashmir and Ladakh


In the strongest electoral rebuff to separatists, Kashmiris and Jammu residents lined up in thousands outside polling booths, declaring support for democracy and posting the highest turnout in 15 seats that polled on Tuesday since the last delimitation in 1995. The turnout of 71.3% was much higher than in 2008 when the same seats had polled around 65%. J&K had registered 52.6% voting in the LS elections earlier this year. Some seats in the Valley recorded more votes than Jammu and Ladakh despite the boycott call. A heavy 75% turnout was recorded in three Bandipora constituencies in north Kashmir.
Describing the elections as “flawless“, deputy election commissioner Vinod Zutshi said there wasn't a single “vitiating“ incident save minor clashes.“There were a few incidents of bursting of fire crackers in Bandipora, nothing else,“ said Zutshi, attributing the high turnout to “the combined efforts of everyone, along w ith good security and voter awareness efforts of the EC“. Kashmiris and Jammu residents lined up in thousands outside polling booths, declaring support for democracy and posting the highest turnout of 71.3%, in the 15 seats that polled on Tuesday since the last delimitation in 1995.
Deputy election commissioner Vinod Zutshi described the elections as “flawless“. There were at least 43 chopper sorties to airlift personnel and security to remote areas, Zutshi said. Voter enthusiasm was best showcased when a 121-year-old lady voter, Noor Bin, voted in Ramban, the EC said.
Independent sources, however, said an explosive went off minutes after voting began at a polling station in Bandipora.Another blast was reported at Naidkhi in Sonawari, north Kashmir, with eyewitnesses saying it was a petrol bomb thrown by miscreants to scare away voters. But that did not deter them, they said.
The sense in some quarters that the Omar government would get washed away in the elections because of mishandling of September floods gained traction as the turnout rose through the day. Kashmiri separatists said the turnout was a result of large security presence but political analysts believed they were soft on the election boycott given BJP's presence, particularly in the Valley. Rejecting this, hardliner Syed Ali Geelani said, “The government conducted these elections on the strength of security forces,“ adding that the police had said they would crush anybody trying to disrupt polling and they proved it.
However, 88-year-old Sanaullah Dar of Theru village in Ganderbal said, “We consciously chose to remain with India in 1947. Voting is our right and I voted for my candidate and so did my family.“

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